Quince Cheese (& Paste)
'Fruit Cheese' is a solidly set conserve that can be cut into slices - the name refers to its texture only, as it contains no dairy products. 'Fruit Paste' is freshly-made 'Cheese' which has been potted-up rather than matured: simply a thick spreadable jam.
Quince pectin levels are highest in under-ripe fruit. It is essential that you know how mature your fruit is when making this recipe - if overmature the final result will never set properly, no matter how long you cook it for.
Roughly chop whole quince into large chunks, toss into a jam pot, cover with water & simmer till tender. Take off the heat, mash all together then pass through a coarse sieve.
In a jam pot on the very lowest heat (too hot & you'll end up with a real mess on your hands!) stir together 1lt quince puree and 750ml white sugar. Cook out till a trail is left as you pull the spoon through the mix, listening for a sizzling sound as you do so - this can take up to 6 hours so be patient!
It is ready more by intuition than recipe: you need to cook it down till it's quite thick, yet not cook it so far that the sugar caramelises or even burns. A lot depends on the quality of the pectin present in the fruit and only a trial will tell you that.
For cheese, pour into lightly-oiled small loaf tins (smaller loaves mature quicker than larger ones) and leave to set overnight. Tip out onto plastic chopping boards (fruit acids react with metal) and leave uncovered in a cupboard to mature by dehydration. Once a crunchy, sugary bloom has developed over the surface it is ready to cut, 9 months is a minimum time to allow. For the mature version in the photo allow 1 to 2 years. For paste, pot up into a jam jars, then it's ready to eat.
Quince cheese is great paired with blue cheese, though, better still, try eating it with a chunk of chocolate. You can make an excellent sauce by melting equal parts quince paste and chocolate, with a dash of water to thin.
Our own quince orchard provides us with plenty of fruit to make these cheese 'ingots'. Having three different cultivars, each ripening at different times, means the availability of premium fruit is extended. As the cooking process is quite protracted this is a distinct advantage.
