Quince Jelly & Membrillo (Quince Paste) Recipe
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Category: |
Category: |
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Ingredients: |
Ingredients: For Jelly:
3 1/2 pounds quince (about 4 large fruits)
7 cups water
3 1/2 cups sugar (granulated)
For Membrillo:
For each 2 cups of milled quince pulp:
1.5 C granulated sugar
1.5 T lemon juice
pinch of salt
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Directions: |
Directions:Jelly:
Wash the quinces and cut off the stem ends. Leave the peels on. Core the fruit by chopping around the cores. Compost or discard the stems and cores. Chop the fruit into large chunks, 6 to 8 pieces per quince.
Place the quince in a large pot. Pour in the water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer until the fruit is mushy-soft (about 1 hour).
Mash the cooked quince with a potato masher. If the mashed fruit is on the dry side, add a little more water. You want a consistency like soupy applesauce.
Place a jelly bag, or a very finely meshed strainer, over a large bowl or pot. Ladle the runny quince mash into the strainer or cheesecloth-lined colander. Leave it for 2 hours.
SAVE THE PULP TO MAKE MEMBRILLO.
You should end up with at least 4 cups of juice. If you are not getting much juice, stir a little more water into the mash in the cheesecloth-lined colander or the strainer (do not add the water directly to the strained juice or it will be too diluted).
Pour the quince juice into a large pot. Add 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar per cup of juice.
Bring to a boil over high heat. Stir constantly at first until the sugar is completely dissolved. Stir occasionally after that until the gel point.
Ladle into sterilized half-cup canning jars, leaving 1/2-inch space at the top. Screw on canning lids. Process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes. Remove the jars of quince jelly from the boiling water bath and allow them to cool completely.
Membrillo:
Process pulp through the finest holes of a food mill to remove skins and fibers.
Weigh or measure the puree then put it in a large pot. Add an equal amount by weight or volume of granulated sugar.
Add 1.5 T of lemon juice per 2 cups paste and salt.
Cook over low heat until very thick, approximately 1 1/2 hours. Stir constantly at first to dissolve the sugar, frequently after that. When it is done the quince paste will stick to a wooden spoon, and if you drag the spoon over the bottom of the pot it will leave a trail that does not fill in immediately with the quince. Be careful at the end of the cooking time to stir often and not let it burn.
Lightly grease a baking dish or use wax paper. Spread the quince paste in the dish smoothing it out with the back of a spoon. It should be about 1 1/2-inches thick. Let the paste cool in the baking dish.
Dry the quince paste for 8 hours or overnight. The surface should be glossy and not sticky to the touch.
Put the baking dish of quince paste into the refrigerator for 4 hours.
Run a knife around the edges of the paste. Invert the quince paste onto a plate. Wrap in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 months or freeze. |
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Number Of
Servings:Varies |
Preparation
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Preparation
Time:A long time, it's a labor of love |
Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes: I absolutely love quince, it is a shame that they are all but forgotten in the US. I have two trees on the South Utica property, but only one is old enough to produce, a Russian quince (producing, medium sized fruits, less astringent and can be eaten raw) and a Van Deman, developed by L. Burbank.
If you are going to make jelly, you'd be foolish not to also make membrillo since you use the leftover pulp.
You do not need to make all at once. The pulp and or juice may be refrigerated for a few days before using.
Membrillo makes an excellent gift, but if you only have a small amount, hoard it! Wrapped in plastic and frozen, it keeps indefinitely.
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