Mele Cotogne in Giulebbe (Quince in Syrup)

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Mele Cotogne in Giulebbe (Quince in Syrup)

 

Poached quinces in a clove-and-cinnamon-scented syrup are served at

Rosh Hashanah and to break the fast at Yom Kippur. In this version,

the quinces are left unpeeled for the preliminary cooking in water,

and then peeled and cooked in syrup (which I personally prefer,

because raw quinces are rather hard and difficult to be cut and

peeled)

In " La cucina livornese " , Pia Bedarida recommends peeling the

quinces, letting them rest to take a reddish brown colour as they

oxidize, and then cooking them in syrup.

Other cooks peel the quinces and cook them in syrup immediately, but

suggest saving the peels and cooking them along with the sliced

quinces. Still other recipes use wine instead of water.

 

2 pounds quinces

 

For the syrup:

2 cups sugar

1 cup water, or as needed

2 whole cloves

2 cinnamon sticks

 

In a large saucepan, combine the quinces with water to cover. Bring

to a boil over high heat and cook, uncovered, until barely tender, 10

to 15 minutes. Drain the quinces and, when cool enough to handle,

peel, halve, core and cut into slices.

 

To make the syrup, in a saucepan large enough to accommodate the

sliced quinces, combine the sugar, I cup of water, cloves and

cinnamon sticks.

Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve

the sugar.

Add the quinces and additional water if needed to cover.

Simmer for 5 minutes.

Then, over the course of 12 hours, bring the quince slices to a boil

in the syrup 3 times, boiling them for 5 minutes each time.

This helps to bring up the rich red colour of the fruit and helps

them to absorb the syrup over time.

 

Transfer to a serving dish and refrigerate.

Serve chilled.

 

Serves 6 (as all the recipes posted before - sorry, I forgot to add

that)

 

Source: " Cucina Ebraica - Flavors of the Italian Jewish Kitchen " by

Joyce Goldstein, Chronicle Books, San Francisco