Membrillo

Here's a fun project if your pantry if over stocked with jellies and jams from the summer canning season, but you just can't help yourself from the joys of boiling fruit and sugar: make membrillo!

Membrillo, or quince paste, is a thick, sweet fruit paste traditionally paired with Manchego, a Spanish sheep's milk cheese, but, really, don't stop at just one kind of cheese. And don't stop at cheese, either. How about using membrillo in a pastry?

If you're not familiar with quince, quince is a hard fruit related to apples and pears, and has a most beautiful, sweet floral aroma. Quince is most often cooked, as it's too sour for most people to eat out of hand.

Quince are in season now, and because I run into quince a bit at work, I decided to tackle the recipe for membrillo in the current Vegetarian Times. Extremely easy, and quite impressive when you whip out a last minute cheese plate and can brag about your homemade membrillo.You'll start by peeling, coring, and chopping the quince. Then you'll cover the quince along with a few strips of lemon peel with water, and simmer covered until tender.Whirl the quince and lemon peel around in a food processor, then add it back to the pot along with sugar and a little lemon juice.
From here, you just simmer until the puree reduces to a very thick paste and magically turns a lovely shade of pinkish orange. Tannins are the magic.Spread the paste in a parchment paper-lined container for easy lifting when the paste is done chilling and firming, then cut off a few slices to enjoy.Membrillo
adapted from Vegetarian Times
makes about 1 cup

2 quince, peeled, cored and roughly chopped
3 strips of lemon peel
sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice

• In a medium saucepan, add quince and lemon peel. Add enough water to the saucepan to cover the quince. Bring water to a boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer. Simmer 10-30 minutes, or until tender (yours may take significantly longer to become tender depending on the fruit). Drain water from quince.
• Add quince and lemon peel to a food processor and puree. Measure the volume of the quince puree, then return quince puree to the saucepan.
• How ever much quince puree you have, add an equal amount of sugar to the sauce pan, along with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.
  
• Simmer quince and sugar mixture over low heat, stirring occasionally, until very thick, about 45-90 minutes.
  
• Transfer quince paste to a parchment paper-lined container, and cool.
• Unmold quince paste, and slice.