Quince paste
This traditional French "pâte de fruit" (fruit paste or leather) has a distinctive, firm consistency and is full of flavour, with the characteristic tang of quince.
The preparation is rather long, but the result is well worth all the effort.
6,3083/5
Last modified on: December 3rd 2017
For 900 g, you will need:
- 1 : 800 g quince
- 2 : ½ lemon
- 3 : 450 g granulated sugar
- 4 : 30 g jam sugar
- 5 : 1 orange (optional)
- Total weight: 1,645 grams
How long does it take?
| Preparation | Resting | Cooking | Start to finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| 33 min. | 1 hour | 30 min. | 2 hours 3 min. |
At what time?When will I finish if I start the recipe at a certain time?
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Step by step recipe
| 1 |  | Wash and brush 800 g quinces, but do not peel, as the skin add to the flavour. | 3 min. |
| 2 |  | Cut the quinces into quarters, then remove and discard the core. Cut each quarter into small pieces. Put the quince pieces into a saucepan, add ½ lemon cut into 4 and just enough water to cover. Note: From 800g of quinces, you should be left with 500 g of cut fruit. |
8 min. |
| 3 |  | Put the pan uncovered on medium heat and cook until the fruit is soft enough for the point of a knife to go through it easily. | 20 min. |
| 4 |  | After cooking, discard the lemon pieces and pass the quinces through a vegetable mill on "fine" setting. Do not throw away the cooking liquid. |
5 min. |
| 5 |  | Transfer the quince pulp into a saucepan and weigh it (from 500 g cut fruit, you should be left with about 350 g of cooked pulp). Weigh 30% of this weight in cooking liquid (100 g here), then mix this with the quince pulp. You can add the zest of 1 orange at this point. |
3 min. |
| 6 |  | Weigh 450 g granulated sugar (this should be the same wieght as the mixture of fruit pulp and cooking liquid). Take out 50 g of this sugar at mix it separately with the 30 g jam sugar. |
3 min. |
| 7 |  | Put the saucepan on high heat and bring to the boil, then tip in the 50 g of sugar with its gelling agent. | 4 min. |
| 8 |  | Mix well, bring back to the boil and cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. | 3 min. |
| 9 |  | Add the rest of the sugar all at once. | 1 min. |
| 10 |  | Mix well, bring back to the boil and cook for a further 3 minutes, stirring constantly. | 3 min. |
| 11 |  | Pour into a mould or tin, lined with a sheet of cooking parchment. Leave to cool for at least 1 hour. |
1 hour |
| 12 |  | Turn out and cut into pieces about the size of a sugar cube. | 10 min. |
| 13 |  | You can make the paste look more attractive by rolling the pieces in a little granulated sugar, but this is not essential. |
Remarks
This is a very ancient sweetmeat, particularly appreciated at the French court during the Renaissance. It was apparently a favourite of both Marie de' Medici and the Duc de Guise.
Nutritional information
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How much will it cost?
For 900 g : 2.74 €
Source: From gaston Lenôtre, but dedicated to Isabelle and Patrick who will recognise something of themselves here..
More recipes?
This recipe use (among others) | Quince: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Quince and apple compote, ... [All] |
 | Granulated sugar: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Galette Charentaise, Windfall apple jelly, Windfall apple jelly, Kouign-amann brioche, ... [All] |
 | Jam sugar: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Clementine sorbet, Fillings for macaroons, Macarons (the original French macaroons) , ... [All] |
 | Lemon: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Eggs "en cocotte" with spinach, Windfall apple jelly, Preserved lemons, Tagliatelle and courgette spaghetti, carbonara style, Fish in white wine, ... [All] |
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