November 16th
2006
Doesn't the Spanish name sound so much nicer than the German "Quitte" or English "quince"? If I think hard enough I could come up with the one or other jam recipe I've come across in the past that featured quinces and I've also seen it as a accompaniment to venison (essentially as a cranberry/Preiselbeeren replacement). But have I ever worked with quinces myself? Nope, I never felt intrigued enough. And if it wasn't for the box that had Membrillo in large letters written across it, I wouldn't have stopped at the fruit stand to buy a couple to begin with. Now what?
I was looking for a classic recipe. An original, something compelling and simple at the same time and did find it: Membrillo, a Spanish delicacy, traditionally eaten with cheese such as Manchego. Other cheese accompaniment such as Fragolaceto have innately a tart taste to them, the recipes I found for Membrillo promised a milder product and that doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing...unless...
When I served Oliver a few samples of Manchego and Membrillo, his first reaction was: "mm pretty good, but it could use a bit more acidity...". Ugh! That was the whole point! For sanity sakes, I cross checked with other online sources and almost none of which mentioned any additional ingredient adding acidity outside of the quinces' own. I also shared a few pieces with our friends Harry and Kristin (who recently reopened cafe solo, which used to be cup o' coffee in the days) who, using these exact same words, commented it with "...think it could use some more acidity..." OK - that's it guys, no more sharing!
I made a mental note for the next time, a shot of lime juice or alternatively a splash of apple balsamic might in fact be a good idea (public pressure became too much to bear) other than that I was super happy with the results - and truth spoken, Oliver liked it, too: the mmh-sounds gave it away...and for some reason, that piece in the fridge keeps getting smaller and smaller!
What fascinates me the most is the texture. A product of only two single ingredients (if you don't count the added water), creating such a yummy, firm and so-they-say infinitely preserved paste. I keep mine in the fridge, wrapped in foil, and it tastes and looks perfect. Another aha effect is the change in color: When you start boiling the fruit pieces everything is light yellow-orange, but after an hour it'll turn into a lively deep red-orange color. Magic or "witchcraft", as Sebastian cheekily commented not so long ago?
Wash, peel, core quinces, then chop coarsely and place in a large pot. Add enough water to cover the quinces and boil covered for about 30 minutes or until fruit is very soft. Remove excess water and weight.
Process the fruit until very smooth either with a regular or a handheld blender. Add an equal amount (see step 1) of sugar and combine with fruit pulp in the same pot.
Cook, stirring over a low heat until the sugar dissolves. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the quince paste thickens and has a deep orange color. This will take round about 60-90 minutes.
Transfer cooked paste to a parchment paper lined and lightly greased pan (mine was about 20x20cm/8x8") and spread paste flat. Place in oven at low heat (50°C/120°F) with the fan on for an hour or so to aid the drying process.
To serve (with cheese): Cut into small wedges or squares. To store: Wrap in foil and keep in fridge.
Note: Some recipes suggest the use of a muslin to also cook the peel and core, which I believe is not necessary and simply adds more work. You decide.
Membrillo (quince paste)
Recipe source: combination of various sources
Prep time: 20min., cooking/drying: ~2,5 hours
.
Ingredients (serves many...):
4 quinces, peeled, cored and coarsely cubed
equal amount of white sugar (determined in step 1)
water
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to serve: crackers and cheeses (e.g. Manchego)
Yum, Quittenbrot!
I love quinces. My (German) recipe calls for a little lemon juice - but then I cut the quince paste in small rectangles and coat them in sugar, so maybe it just balances out that extra sweetness.
Sorry, my english as horrible. I'd like "membrilo con queso (manchego)" but I'd like "membrillo con mató (curd)" or yoghourt.
or with "panellets". Your recipe is very simply. Thanks
Nicky, I bought three huge quinces ('aiva' or 'küdoonia' in my language) this very morning, and plan to make membrillo and something else during the weekend:) Thanks for the timely post!
acid is also good for another reason - the pectin in the quinces need acid for gelling
I've seen everyone talking about quince paste as being amazing and flavourful, but this is the first actual recipe I've seen posted! Quince season has passed for us Aussies, but come next Fall I'll definetely be giving this a try!
Hallo Nicky,
ich habe dieses Jahr Quittenbrot nach einem Rezept von Rosa aus dem letztjährigen "kulinarischen Weihnachtskalender" gemacht (allerdings die Mischung vor dem Trocknen noch etwa 45 Minuten unter Rühren eingekocht). Da kommt relativ viel Zitronensaft dazu - uns hat das ganz ausgezeichnet geschmeckt, kann ich empfehlen!
Sieht wie immer fantastisch aus! Ich liebe Manchego. Mit Quitten habe ich noch nie etwas gemacht. Werde also sofort danach Ausschau halten und es wie so häufig nachkochen.
Celia
Just another foodblog @
http://greententacle.wordpress.com/
Hi Nicky,
I just did a post about a Cauliflower Manchego gratin with a membrillo glaze. Try it out, you may like it. http://scrumptious.typepad.com/srbeack/2006/11/cauliflower_man.html
I agree on the acid, I added white wine to my quince glaze. I was balancing with the whole dish so didn't want to go too stark on the acid. A squeeze of clementine juice would also work well in my recipe.
Here in brazil we make the "goiabada" with "goiaba"(guava for english speakers) in a similar way as the quince paste of this post...
And a tradicional way to serve it is with some slices of cheese(here the common choice is the mozzarela) and this combinations is named "romeu e julieta"(rome & juliet)...
I love membrillo! My mother always makes quince jelly every year, it is much less concentrated than membrillo, is beautiful pale pink colour, and is a traditional accompaniment to roast lamb here in the UK. Quince trees are easy and quick to grow, and will generally give you fruit after only a couple of years, so they are a worthwhile addition if your garden is large enough.
It is delicious with fresh cheese as well...
I make my membrillo without cooking in water first, I wonder what a difference it makes... I also decided that I like quince marmalade better, just slice the quince in very thin slices (you have a perfect gadget for it, don't you) and cook with the sugar and a dash of lemon juice. And in Turkey we make a decadent dessert with quinces, I think I will have to cook it up for you next time.....
PS: Pille, how funny, we call quinces a very similar name: Ayva!
Membrillo?! Quince pulp, sugar, squeezed lemon... Nicky, that's our cotognata! It is an ancient italian sweet dating back to the 14th century and a typical sicilian dessert.
I suggest you to taste cheese also with the spicy version of the cotognata (aka mostarda vicentina): a jam made with a mixture of quinces, sugar, candied citrus fruits and a bit of essential mustard oil.
I can assure you that you'll have an aha effect!
Cheers :)
What a beautiful way to highlight such a delicious fruit. Thanks for sharing.
Hallo, Ihr alle! Ich bin ein absoluter Quitten-Fan, koche sie zu Kompott, Gemüse und brate sie geraspelt sogar als 'Puffer'. In meinem Kochbuch 'Mezze, ein Genuss' findet Ihr ein Rezept, bei dem die Quitten in Riesling weichgekocht und zusätzlich mit Zitronensaft abgeschmeckt werden. Kann ich echt empfehlen!
First thought: no acidity in combination with Manchego, who brings in his own acidity. But that's only theory. I tried Manchego with a very-virgin and so a little bit acid olive oil last week, that was great too. Maybe a combination of yours and this?
Membrillo or cotagnata? I really don't mind, when the recipe is so simple good like this one. Silly question: What is the difference between membrillo (or cotagnata, if some like) and quince marmalata? And am I right with the information, that just "marmalata" in its origin was always made with quinces and is so the origin for the word "marmelade"?
Sebastian, as far as I know, and as far as all my real italian sources can tell, cotognata is the same as marmellata di mele cotogne, the only difference being that cotognata is firmer, usually pressed into a flat form and dried and is from Sicily, whereas the marmellata is somewhat more runny and is kept in jars, aka a jam! If you are making the marmellata di mele cotogne in the region of Mantova (Cremona, to be exact), use fine slices instead of pulp, add mustard seed grains and go through a very slow process involving waiting for days, you have mostarda, which I especially love with cheese!
[...] 16.11.06: Quitten oder auf spanisch Membrillo stellt delicious days vor [...]
Quince is lovely in all kinds of ways - we recently had a dessert of poached quince with crunchy praline ice cream at a gastropub here in London, and will definitely be attempting to replicate it at home! Your recipe looks delicious, can't wait to try that as well.
I fell in love with quince last year and only managed to do one recipe with it.First I had to poach it in the oven for what seemed to be ages. Then \i used it in a cake. The colour of th e cooked is so divine. This year I have started by making some quince tart tatin and I a m decided to try loads of new recipes. i liked your recipe here and might give it a go.Lovely post. As usual.
I love membrillo, but since it´s so easy to buy, I prefer to cook mine in a compote, with cloves. It turns a delicate pink and is so so good.
I am glad to have come across this recipe. I made Membrillo according to your recipe last night and it was certainly worth the 3h effort. However, I used less sugar and quite some freshly squeezed lemon juice and the Membrillo is still perfectly sweet. I already tried it with some aromatic French cheese and it works very well. I guess some of our friends will have some Membrillo added to their "gift box" for Christmas :)
Just to ad some more info on this: in Portugal, we call it “marmelada”. It is made more or less like this recipe. Some people like to eat it with cheese too. It is a desert often called “Romeu e Julieta” (no need for translation for this one, do you?), because both are delicious but very, very different – a perfect match!
Ulrike, Glad you liked the recipe! Oliver was delighted by the fact, that you tried it with additional lemon juice, so I'll simply have to use some for my next batch as well ;)
Nice to read that so many people do something with quince - in the Netherlands it's not very common. I made membrillo two weeks ago, and it has a little acidity, especially afterwards. In the recipe I use, you cook the quinces as a whole (unpeeled, uncut). After cooking them you peel and clean and continue like your recipe. Maybe some acidity comes from cooking the peel along?
I also like to combine the membrillo with walnut.
Membrillo is delicious... just the right bit of sweetness to have with a soft cheese. I can just imagin it as a glaze over cheesecake or topping a cheese danish... Yum--mine was a gift from a family in Mexico made by the saldegado company.... I can even imagine a membrillo martini---Wow!
I just made a batch.
I grew up with this paste.
Where I come from we call it "Marmelada".
Here is mine:
Marmelada
My husband and I have been drinking fresh membrillo juice while visiting Peru, S.A., for many years. I have just gotten brave enough to buy some of the fresh fruit here in Arizona, USA, and give it a try. I would like more recipes using this delicious fruit!
dulce de membrillo is, I think, a common treat not only in Spain but in Latin america too; at least here in Chile is very, very common, they sell it in every supermarket...but my nanny makes a great one :) I don't like it that much, but my mom loves it; she eats it alone or with cheese, on top of bread or cookies, and even with cookies with peanut butter (I don't like that idea though xD)
Membrillo jelly is very good too...I have seen it as a main ingredient in biscuits, cakes, cookies, ice creams!
Your blog is great :D
[...] with sugar and water, membrillo turns into a type of paste. While in Spain it is traditionally served with cheese, here in Argentina it most often takes the form of a sweet [...]
Does anyone use the small quince fruit from Quince bushes? It makes delicious jelly, but I'm wondering how I can make Membrillo with it as the fruit is so small its impossible to peel and core. Any ideas?
[...] is practically the national snack of Spain when paired with Manchego, sheep’s milk cheese. Nicky and Melissa have written about membrillo, enough to inspire me to go to Whole Foods and buy some to [...]
i made a large batch today from very ripe yellow gorgeous quinces from my tree. i live in northern california, usa. this is my second batch this year! my grandmother always made membrillo. i use about 6 cups fruit to equal amts of sugar. to this, i add a half a lemon, juice and all. cook it with the fruit and remove later. the lemon oil from the rind really adds a great flavor. i also cook the quince in the microwave after cleaning. i cook them whole till soft, covered by a wet paper towel. then cut them, skin and all into a large pot, add a little water and the rest of the ingredients and boil on low till very thick, stirring frequently to avoid burning. i finish it off in the convection oven, in a large shallow glass baking dish, stirring every once in a while. the color is wonderful, ruby red. it gels overnight and can be cut into slabs. good stuff!!!
Thanks to my foreign colleagues I was able to try Membrillo a while ago and I just brought back two big pieces from Spain. Can't wait to try it again!
In Dutch the name is: Kweepeer! :)
My girlfriend liked the membrillo in Spain mixed in a salad with goat's cheese, some nuts and rocket.
Can I substitute guavas for quince?
what a beautiful color! This quince paste should be a real pleasure with goat's cheese. I will try it!