Quince Paste, Quince Jam and Quince Jelly

I have already talked about my very large quantities of quinces that I need to do something with.  Here are some other recipes for those of you with a few quinces.  I have this year tried to cook quince paste in the slow cooker but I actually prefer the stove top version.  Sometimes I add cinnamon sticks and cloves when poaching the quinces that I am using for quince paste, but that is optional.

I was planning to go to a local market with my fresh quinces, quince paste, dried quince straps and quince muffins as well as some jars of Mums quince jelly today, but it is pouring with rain at the moment which is putting me off (it is an open air market). The idea is to convince some other people of the beauty of the humble quince.


Slow Cooked Quince Paste:
Cook 5-6 whole quinces in slow cooker with water for 3-4 hours on high.  Let them cool, then remove peel and cores and discard poaching water.  Blend the fruit until smooth and put back into the slow cooker.  Add equal amount of white sugar and cook on low stirring until sugar dissolves.  Cover and keep cooking on low, stirring occasionally for a couple of hours.  Remove the lid and cook for a further 1/2 hour uncovered.  You need to have a really thick consistency.  When cooked, spoon into plastic lined containers (little pudding containers or muffin trays are about the right size).  Store covered in the fridge.  Keeps for up to 4 months.

Stove top Quince Paste:
Peel and core 4 - 6 quinces, cook on stovetop in a saucepan of water for about 30 minutes.  Let them cool, then blend the fruit until smooth and put back into the saucepan.  Add equal amount of white sugar and cook on low stirring until sugar dissolves.  Keep cooking on low, stirring every 20 minutes for a couple of hours or until a dark ruby red colour.  Spoon into plastic lined containers and refrigerate. 

The following recipes are from my Mums friend Beth who also supplied the sublime fig jam recipe in a previous post:

Quince Jam (1):
Cook 6 quinces with 3 cups of water until soft enough to mash.  Add 2 1/2 kg sugar and boil until a good colour.

Quince Jam (2):
Boil 5\600ml water add 2 kg sugar.  Mince 6 large quinces, add to boiled syrup.  Add 425 g tin crushed pineapple, simmer for 40 minutes.

Here is my Mums contribution to the quince collection:

Quince Jelly:
Poach 3 kg of whole quinces with 3 kg of white sugar in 3 litres of water.  Strain liquid into jars.  If it does'nt set you can use some jam setta to get the right consistency.