Since I made quince jelly, people have been telling me about membrillo. This quince paste is almost the Spanish national snack paired with Manchego sheep’s milk cheese. Nicky, Melissa wrote about membrillo. It was enough to get me going to Whole Foods to buy some.
Oh, my goodness. You must try membrillo with Manchego if you still need to.
This is what I would eat every day if I lived in Spain.
You’ll be able to see why it’s so popular once you try it. Quince is a complex fruit resembling a cross between apples and pear. You can only eat most varieties cooked. They are pink when cooked and have a sweet, floral scent. They are in season in the fall, just like apples and pears.
Ingredients
- 4 pounds quince, washed, peeled, cored, roughly chopped
- One vanilla pod split
- Two strips (1/2 in by two each) of Lemon Zest (only yellow peel and no white pith).
- Three tablespoons of lemon juice
- About 4 cups granulated sugar, the exact amount will be determined during cooking
Method
- Boil the quince with water and vanilla pod.
- Cover the quince pieces with enough water to cover the saucepan. Bring to a boil the vanilla pod, lemon peel, and water. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover. Let cook for 30-40 minutes.
- Make quince puree:
- Strain the water out of the quince pieces. The vanilla pod should be thrown out, but the lemon peel should remain with the quince. Blend the quince pieces using a food processor or blender.
- Measure the puree
- Measure the quantity of quince puree. You will need as much sugar no matter how much quince puree. If you have 4 cups puree, you will need 4 cups sugar.
- To dissolve the sugar in the puree, heat it and then add the lemon juice.
- Place the quince purée in a large saucepan. Heat on medium-low heat. Add the sugar. Use a wooden spoon to stir the sugar until it is completely dissolved. Add the lemon juice.
- Turn the heat down to medium-low until it becomes thick and dark pink.
- Cook the quince paste on low heat for approximately 1 1/2 hours, occasionally stirring until it becomes thick and has an orange-pink color.
- To dry, place in a low oven.
- Preheat oven to low 125degF (52degC). Use parchment paper to line an 8×8 baking dish. Use a thin butter coating to grease the parchment paper. Place the cooked quince paste in a parchment-lined baking dish. Smoothen the paste until it is uniform.
- Place the paste in the oven at 125 degrees F for about an hour to dry it. Use a fan or convection setting in your range. Let cool in the oven.
- Serve:
- Cut into wedges or squares, and serve with Manchego cheese. Take a small piece of the membrillo, and place it on top of a slice of cheese. You can store it in foil or plastic wrap and keep it in the fridge.
