Courtesy of Jordan Champagne of Happy Girl Kitchen Co.
QUINCE JELLY
Quince, a cousin to the pear and apple, is a nearly forgotten fruit. Many folks let them fall dejected to the ground, unappreciated because quince are unpalatable when raw. Like biting into an unripe persimmon or banana, the quince is very astringent and chalky. Once cooked, its yellow color melts into a rosy pink and a sweet floral essence is released.
Quince is a wonderful fruit for jelly making because it has such a high content of pectin. I always reduce or completely omit the use of sugar when I adapt recipes with the exception of making jelly: Sugar is what gives jelly its beautiful thick, quivering consistency.
I can remember many failed experiments trying to reduce the amount of sugar, and have resolved to simply use less jelly on my toast instead! Quince can also be made into butter, sauces or preserved whole, but I think jelly really illuminates its essence very well.
5 pounds quince
8 pints water
2 cups sugar (I prefer evaporated cane juice) to each 2 1/2 cups of quince juice
12 large rose geranium leaves
Wash quince and chop roughly—including peels and cores. Place in pot with water and simmer gently for about 50 minutes, or until soft and pulpy.
Strain through a jelly bag or cheesecloth.
Measure the juice and return to cleaned pan. Should have about 10 cups. Heat up juice and add appropriate amount of sugar until completely dissolved.
Bring to a boil and boil rapidly until setting point is reached, about 15 minutes. Hot pack into jars. Yields 10 1/2 pints of jelly.
Happy Girl Kitchen Co.’s café, the site of Happy Girl’s fall harvest party, is located at 173 Central Ave. in Pacific Grove.
For more information, go to www.happygirlkitchen.com.
For Champagne’s Apple Butter recipe and her basic canning instructions, please go to the EMB website.
About the author
Jordan Champagne is the co-owner and founder of Happy Girl Kitchen Co.
She has a passion for preserving the local, organic harvest and loves sharing
her secrets at workshops she teaches in Pacific Grove and in Oakland.
