Spiced Quince Jam Recipes

Steps:

• Wash quince under running water, removing the fuzzy outer layer with a soft sponge or fruit brush.
• Heat water and lemon juice to a simmer in a saucepan. Add quince. Bring to a boil and add sugar and cinnamon stick. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until fruit is soft, about 45 minutes.
• Remove saucepan from heat; discard cinnamon stick. Mix in lemon zest. Pass hot mixture through a sieve into a bowl to create a semi-smooth consistency. Allow to cool and thicken before pouring into sealable jars.

Steps:

• To make the quince juice, wash & wipe off fuzz from quinces, cut off stem & anything remaining at blossom end and cut into eighths. Do not discard the cores or the seeds as they contain a lot of natural pectin. Place in a large pan and cover with water so the pieces float. Bring to a boil and stir. Reduce heat to a low simmer, cover and simmer for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally (2 hours will do the trick, but I like to let it simmer for 3, so the fruit is very soft).
• Using a fine sieve, strain the "juice" from the pulp. The "juice" can vary from an actual juice to a thin puree - it depends on if the fruit breaks down or not. Press on the fruit with the back of a large spoon to extract all the juice.If some of the pulp squeezes through the sieve and into the juice that's fine. If you get more than the 6 cups needed for this recipe you can freeze it to use later.
• Place two or three small saucers in the freezer. You will use these later to check the set of the jam.
• In a preserving pan, combine the 6 cups quince juice, juice and zest of the orange and the lemon, spices, & sugar. If you don't have a preserving pan, use the widest pan you have. The wider the pan, the more quickly moisture will evaporate from the mixture, and this is what you want when making jelly or jam.
• Bring to a boil and continue cooking on medium-high heat for about 20 minutes, stirring gently. Check the set - it may take up to 40 minutes of simmering over medium high heat for the jelly/jam to reach the set stage - use the cold plate test to check set: take the pot of jam off the heat (if you don't remove the jam from the heat while you check the set, it could over-cook and become rubbery or hard, if the jam is indeed already set) place a drop of the jam mixture on one of the saucers you've kept in the freezer, & place the plate back in the freezer for 1 minute. After 1 minute, take the saucer out of the freezer and nudge the drop of jam with your finger. If it "wrinkles" when you nudge it with your finger it is done. If the jam is not set, continue cooking over medium-high heat, checking the set again every 5 minutes.
• Once the set point is reached, put the jam into jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace; place flat lids and rings on and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until thick, 1-1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Stir more frequently as the mixture thickens. , Remove from the heat; skim off foam. Carefully ladle into hot half-pint jars, leaving 1/4-in. headspace. Remove air bubbles; wipe rims and adjust lids. Process for 10 minutes in a boiling-water canner.

Steps:

• Put the quince and lemon peel and juice in a large, deep saucepan. Cover with water (you'll need about 3.2 litres) and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 1 hr 30 mins until the quince is very soft.
• Line a colander with muslin cloth, and put over a very large saucepan or heatproof bowl. Tip the quince into the lined colander, cover with a clean tea towel and leave to strain for 4-8 hrs until all the juice has dripped out. Discard the pulp, then measure out the strained juice and transfer to a large, deep saucepan (the jelly will bubble up high as it cooks). Add 500g sugar for every 600ml juice.
• Bring to the boil over a low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Bring to a rapid bubble and cook until the temperature reaches 105C on a sugar thermometer. Remove from the heat and stir in the orange blossom water, if using. Ladle into hot sterilised jars and seal. Will keep in a cool, dark place for up to a year.