Saturday 20 September 2014

Globecooking : Dulce de Membrillo (Spain)


When I popped into Lidl earlier in the week, I noticed they were having a clear-out. Following on from a recent Spanish week, they had a bargain basement bin full of Iberian products at very low prices. I couldn't resist buying a few to try. The first discovery was Dulce de Membrillo.


Also known as Quince Cheese, it's a very sweet, firm jelly-like substance made from quinces and sugar. The fruit gives it a slightly tart flavour but it tasted of jam to me. We ate some on its own and I thought it could be a lovely accompaniment to cheeses. Sophie then decided to try it as jam, spreading it on bread, which she said was very nice too. I might try making a sort of jam tart with the rest.

If you fancy having a go yourself, here's the recipe :

 Dulce de Membrillo

2kg quince, peeled and chopped
1 vanilla pod
lemon peel (pith removed)
3 tbsp lemon juice
4 cups sugar

Put the quince in a large pan of water with the vanila pod (split) and the lemon peel. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat and leave to simmer for about half an hour until soft.

Drain off the water, remove the vanilla pod and reduce to a puree with a stick blender or food processor. 

Pour into a measuring jug to see how much you've got and add the same quantity of sugar. Return to the pan with the lemon juice and heat, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved. Leave to simmer on a low heat for 60-90 minutes until it is a deep red colour.

Line a square ovenproof dish with greased baking parchment and put it in the oven at 125° for about an hour until it has dried out enough to cut into squares.

(Head over to this Simply Recipes page to see a step-by-step tutorial with photos.)

Other blogposts you may be interested in :

This month's Kitchen Trotter box : destination Jordan

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