Baked Quince

We do love some good quince. It's an underused fruit, and the firm flesh lends itself quite well to baking or poaching. In Olia Hercules' Ukranian cookbook, Mamushka: Recipes from Ukraine and Eastern Europe, this recipe piqued our interest. You don't often see juniper used in desserts, and this was absolutely delicious!

From the Author: "My uncle had a quince tree in his garden and I have always had an overwhelming love for this fruit. We even used to eat it raw (yes, crazy, I know!) or chop it and turn it into jam. I do love it roasted or poached whole, though. Add some sea salt flakes and black pepper, remove the vanilla, and halve the quantity of sugar to make a delicious addition to roast duck."

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups (12 oz/375 ml) water
1/2 cup (3-1/2 oz/105 g) super fine sugar
1 Madagascar 3 Count Vanilla Bean
1 Cassia Stick Cinnamon
2 Star Anise
5 Juniper
3–4 quinces, about
2 lb (1 kg) total weight ice cream, to serve

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325°F/160°C. Place the water with the sugar in a saucepan, add the vanilla seeds and the pod to the pan with the cinnamon stick, star anise, and juniper berries, and cook over low heat, stirring regularly, until the sugar dissolves.

Cut the quinces in half, then cut in half again lengthwise and remove the core. Place the quince quarters in a medium baking dish.

Pour the spiced syrup over the quinces. Cover with foil and pop in the oven for 1 hour, then uncover and cook until the quinces are soft and amber colored, 1 hour more.

Serve this warm with ice cream.

Tags: Cassia Sticks Dessert Easy Fall Fruit Holiday Juniper Star Anise Vanilla