Quince Season is fast disappearing for another year, but if you can get your hands on some, this is a lovely recipe from Mathew Evan's book The Commons... try it with some Mapo Gelato.
A Note from Mathew Evans ....
The best common quince to cook with are Smyrna, which have a luscious perfume and hod together well when cooked. ( Pineapple quince are also common, but don't taste as good, and tend to fall apart when cooked.
4 large or 6 medium whole Smyrna quinces
150g sugar
2 large tablespoons honey
1 cinnamon stick
2 strips lemon rind taken with a potato peeler
1-2 whole star anise
Preheat the oven to 160C
Wash and pat dry the quinces. Halve them if they're particularly large, but you can also leave them whole. Place in a baking tray and pour 400ml water on top, then sprinkle over the sugar and honey and add the cinnamon stick, lemon rind and star anise.
Cover tightly with aluminium foil and roast in the oven for 3-4 hours, or until the quinces are tender and both the quince and cooking syrup are a deep ruby-pink.
Take the tray out of the oven, remove the cooked fruit and strain the syrup into a jug or jar. Both will keep well in the fridge for at least a couple of weeks
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