Quince

Have you ever heard of quince?  My knowledge of the fruit was limited to an Edward Lear poem that I
read as a child about an owl and a pussy cat that "dined on mince and slices of quince which they ate with a runcible spoon." At the botanical gardens, we saw some quince. I think I took a picture then, as well, but it wasn't quite in season yet. Now it is in season. A friend of mine from church has a quince tree in her garden. Last week, she gave me one to try. I peeled it, cut it, as she suggested.  She warned me that there might be some "tenants" and that I should cut them soon.  Because the fruit it pretty hard, she suggested boiling it. She probably did not mean for me to forget about the boiling pot until all the water was boiled off, but I did. It wasn't totally burned and I was able to remove the burned parts and make the rest into a very delicious dish like apple sauce. On Wednesday, she gave me some more, which boiled over because I put in too much water this time. It is quite delicious with a bit of cinnamon. My friend also suggested sugar, but I found that it was sweet enough without sugar. 


What does it taste like?   When raw, it reminds me of star fruit. Cooked, it tastes and looks like a thick apple sauce (left). I also blended a little with my celery soup, which I made from the entire celery, including the bulb. It seems that the most desirable part of the celery for Hungarians is the root.  The soup was also quite delicious. 

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