Quince Tart: An Aromatic Autumnal Delight
Aromatic, fragrant and colourful, quince tart makes a delightful change to quince jelly or cheese. This simple yet satisfying recipe pairs almond pastry made with wholemeal flour and poached quinces. The nutty notes and crumbly texture beautifully complements the unique flavour of the cooked quince. With its rich autumn hue, this tart is a visually appealing dessert fit to grace any table.
Last week, we had a couple of days out and went to visit friends in Lewes. Well what a time to go, their orchard was overflowing with apples and pairs. We took a bagful home with us that also contained a few quinces for they also had a quince tree. There’s something quite exciting about quince and I was pleased as punch.
Dive Right In
- What Is Quince?
- Quince Tart
- Ingredients
- How To Make Quince Tart
- Make It Your Own
- Other Tart Recipes You Might Like
- Keep In Touch
- The Recipe
What Is A Quince?
A quince, Cydonia oblonga, is an archaic fruit in the rosacea family and is related to apples and pears. It’s golden yellow when ripe and looks similar to a large and rather knobbly pear.
The fruit is hard and astringent if you eat it raw, but it has a most wonderful perfume. Just leave one or two on a windowsill and it will scent the whole room.
Cooking with sugar transforms its hard white flesh to aromatic amber or pink perfection.
Quinces originated in Iran and Turkey, but quickly spread around the Mediterranean and then later to the UK and more northern climes. According to Alan Davidson, they arrived in Europe before the apple did. It’s likely that they were introduced to Britain during the Roman occupation.
The most common recipes for quince are quince cheese and quince jelly. They’re both delicious, but sometimes I like to change things up and make something different. This quince cake is an example.
Quince Tart
Bake this simple quince tart as a lovely way to celebrate the autumn harvest. Quinces are typically in season during the autumn months, which makes it the perfect time to enjoy their unique flavour. As the leaves change colour and the air turns crisp, I can’t think of a cosier or more colourful way to embrace the flavours of the season.
This autumnal tart makes for the most wonderful dessert. It’s a bit full on to prepare, so best saved for a weekend extravaganza or when you have friends around for dinner. Serve it warm from the oven with ice-cream or custard or at room temperature with crème fraîche, clotted cream or my Norwegian cream. Either way, it’s sure to impress.
My recipe provides an alternate method of preparing quinces by poaching before coring. This not only enhances their flavour but also makes them easier to deal with.
There’s absolutely no need to peel quince. They cook for so long the peel softens as much as the flesh. Most people wouldn’t even know it was there unless you told them.
As I had a bit of leftover pastry, I made a mini quince galette. I ate it whilst still warm with a spoonful of crème fraîche. How totally delicious it was. You may call this greed, but I call it cook’s perks.
If you ever have leftover pastry, by the way, these cinnamon swirls are an easy and delicious way to use it up.
The tart is best eaten on the day of baking, but it will keep for a further couple of days. The pastry will absorb the moisture from the fruit though, so will no longer be crisp.
Quince Tart Ingredients
The ingredients needed for this simple quince tart are few. Let the flavours of the quince shine out I say. Apart from the inclusion of ground almonds, there’s no unusual ingredients in the wholemeal pastry, so I’ve not included those here.
Quince
For preference look for yellow quinces. The yellower they are, the riper they will be. The riper they are, the less time to cook they will take.
If you don’t grow your own or know someone who does, you should be able to find them in farmers’ markets at this time of year or in a good greengrocer.
Sugar
Quince is a sour fruit. It really needs sugar to sweeten it up. I use golden granulated sugar, but unrefined caster sugar is fine too.
Flavourings
Quince has a unique but quite delicate flavour. So it’s a good idea not to go overboard with flavourings. You want ones that complement or enhance rather than overwhelm. For this reason, I’ve simply gone with lemon, cinnamon and a little rosewater.
Quince’s floral undertones are enhanced by the delicate fragrance of rosewater. However, it’s entirely optional, so if you don’t have any, just leave it out or use orange flower water instead.
How To Make Quince Tart
Quinces are hard to cut and core and they take a long time to cook, so you’ll need to factor in a couple of hours to make this quince tart. It’s so worth the effort though.
You’ll find ingredients and full instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Step 1. Make Syrup
In a large lidded saucepan, warm the water and sugar, giving an occasional stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Meanwhile, pare as much of the lemon rind as you can easily remove. Try not to get any pith on it. I’ve never mastered the art of getting it all off in one piece, but if you can, that’s the way to do it. Saves having to pick out lots of slithers later.
Add the lemon parings to the pan along with the cinnamon stick. Squeeze the juice from the lemon then add that too. This helps to keep the quinces from browning further.
Step 2. Prepare Quinces
Quinces are a bit tough to prepare. They may look like pears, but they are altogether a less tractable fruit. But don’t let this put you off, the rewards are well worth any pain.
Quince are sometimes covered in a layer of down. Whether they are or not, give them a good scrub before commencing. Any down or debris will come off in the wash.
Remove any brown or rotten bits with a pairing knife, then quarter them using a strong sharp knife. They are hard, so be careful.
Cook them like this, core, pips and all. When they’re done, it’s relatively easy to cut out the cores.
As soon as you cut the quinces, drop them straight into the syrup. They start to oxidise almost immediately, but the lemon and sugar in the syrup will stop the browning in its tracks. The syrup should just about cover the fruit.
Step 3. Poach Quince
Bring the quinces and syrup to a gently simmer. Meanwhile cut a round of parchment or greaseproof paper that’s more or less the same size as the pan. This is called a cartouche. Use it to cover the fruit to keep them submerged.
Cover the pan with its lid and leave to poach for thirty minutes. Test for doneness at this point, but they may need up to an hour.
As soon as a sharp knife slips easily through the skin and into the flesh, they’re done. Drain them through a colander, making sure to keep the liquid. As a bonus, you’ll lose the lemon peel and pips in the colander so you won’t need to fish them out later.
Pour the poaching liquid back into the pan, add a further 50g sugar and the cinnamon stick, then bring it back to a simmer. Leave the lid off this time.
When the quince quarters are cool enough to handle, remove the cores with a sharp knife and discard. Then slice each quarter into two or three pieces lengthways. Place them back into the pan and simmer for ten minutes so the slices soak up some of the sweet aromatic syrup.
Drain through a colander once again and again keep the liquid. Leave to cool a little.
Pour the liquid back into the pan, bring to a low boil and cook it down until the liquid reduces by about half and becomes thick and syrupy. This takes around twenty minutes.
Take off the heat and stir in the rosewater, if using.
Top Tip
Once you’ve finished with the quince syrup, pour the leftovers into a jar. It will likely set and you’ll have quince jelly. Even if it stays as syrup, it’s delicious poured over porridge, yoghurt, rice pudding or ice cream. It will keep for ages too.
Step 4. Make Pastry
Whilst the quince quarters are poaching, make the pastry.
Place the flour and other dry ingredients in a large bowl. Cube the butter, add it to the bowl then rub it into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture resembles course breadcrumbs. Don’t worry if you still see little lumps of butter. They help to give the pastry it’s lovely flaky texture.
Add the yoghurt and stir it into the “breadcrumbs” with a round bladed knife until it starts to come together. Gather the dough up in your hands and form into a flattish round. Cover with a tea towel, plastic bag or wrap and leave it to rest somewhere cool for half an hour.
Step 5. Assemble Tart
Lightly butter your tart tin, then roll out the pastry into a circle to fit the bottom and sides. Aim for four millimetres in thickness (just over an eighth of an inch).
Loosely roll the pastry up over your rolling pin, then unroll it over the tart tin. Press the pastry into the sides, then run a knife around the edge to neaten it and remove any excess pastry.
If you have any gaps, use the offcuts to fill them. Just gently press them in.
Lay the drained quince slices around the tart, piling them on top of each other as necessary.
Brush the tart generously with the quince syrup
Step 6. Bake Tart
Place the tart near the top of your preheated oven and bake. It’s done when the pastry is crisp and golden and the quince slices are just starting to catch.
Remove from the oven onto a cooling rack, but generously brush with more syrup immediately.
If eating straight away, allow the tart to cool for ten minutes. Then remove it from the tin and carefully transfer to a serving plate. Serve warm with ice cream or custard.
If eating later, at room temperature, allow it to cool before removing from the tin. The pastry is more stable when cool. Serve with crème fraîche or clotted cream.
Make It Your Own
For me, recipes are there for inspiration or guidance. I rarely follow them exactly. If you’re of the same persuasion, here are a few ideas to make this quince tart your own.
Use ground walnuts or hazelnuts in the pastry instead of almonds. Or if you don’t want to include nuts, just swap them for more wholemeal flour.
When it comes to flavouring the quinces, there are lots of spices and other ingredients that complement them well. Try orange instead of lemon and cloves instead of, or as well as, cinnamon. Swap the rosewater for orange flower water or omit it all together.
Another iteration is to add a layer of frangipane below the quince. But if you go that route, be careful not to overwhelm the glory of the quinces.
Other Tart Recipes You Might Like
- Banana nutella tarts
- Fennel & ginger chocolate tarts
- Gooseberry galette
- Mascarpone fruit curd tarts
- Medlar tart
- Persimmon & ginger custard tarts
Keep in Touch
Thank you for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make this quince tart, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. Do you have any recommendations or advice for preparing quinces?
Please rate the recipe. If you post pictures of your creations on social media, use the hashtag #tinandthyme so I can see them.
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If you’d like more autumnal recipes, follow the link and you’ll find I have quite a lot of them. All delicious and nutritious, of course.
Choclette x
Quince Tart. PIN IT.
Quince Tart: An Aromatic Autumnal Delight
Ingredients
Poached Quinces
- 750 ml water
- 300 g golden caster sugar or granulated sugar – divided into 250g and 50g
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 lemon peel and juice
- 1 kilo quince 3-4 depending on size
- 1 tsp rose water
Pastry
- 125 g wholemeal flour (whole wheat) (I used wholemeal spelt)
- 25 g ground almonds
- 25 g icing sugar
- 1 pinch fine sea or rock salt
- 80 g unsalted butter fridge cold and cubed
- 2 tbsp natural yoghurt
Instructions
Poached Quinces
- In a large pan, dissolve the sugar in the water over a low heat. Add the cinnamon stick.750 ml water, 300 g golden caster sugar, 1 cinnamon stick
- Pare the lemon, ensuring there's no pith attached and add the peel to the water along with the juice.1 lemon
- Using a strong sharp knife, quarter the quinces. There’s no need to peel them or remove the cores at this stage. As soon as you’ve cut them slip them into the syrup; they brown in the air almost instantaneously.1 kilo quince
- Bring the pan to a simmer and gently press a round of greaseproof or parchment paper over the top of the quinces to keep them submerged. Cover the pan with a lid and allow the quinces to cook gently until a knife slips easily through the skin and into the flesh. This can take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour.
- Drain the quinces in a colander, making sure you capture all of the liquid.
- Whilst the quinces are cooling enough to handle, pour the liquid back into the pan. Add a further 50g of sugar and replace the cinnamon stick. Stir to dissolve the sugar.
- Remove the cores from the quince quarters with a sharp knife, then slice lengthways into two or three pieces.
- Place the slices back in the liquid and simmer for ten minutes so that they get a chance to absorb more of the flavour and sweetness.
- Drain the slices in a colander once again making sure to keep the syrup.
- Bring the liquid back to the boil and reduce it down to about half or until it has a syrupy consistency.
- Take off the heat and stir in the rosewater, if using.1 tsp rose water
Pastry
- Whilst the quinces cook, make your pastry. Rub the cubed butter into the dry ingredients with your finger tips until the mixture resembles rough breadcrumbs.125 g wholemeal flour (whole wheat), 25 g ground almonds, 25 g icing sugar, 1 pinch fine sea or rock salt, 80 g unsalted butter
- Add the yoghurt and mix it together with a flat bladed knife or fork until it starts to form a dough. If it’s too dry, add a little more yoghurt, but go carefully as a wet dough usually results in a tough pastry.2 tbsp natural yoghurt
- Form the dough into a flat round with your hands, cover it with a tea towel, a wrap or a plastic bag and leave it in a cool place to rest for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 180℃ (160℃ fan, 350℉, Gas 4).
- Lightly butter a 23 cm (9-inch) fluted tart tin with a removable bottom. Roll out your dough into a round big enough to line the bottom and sides of your tin – about 3-4 mm (⅛ inch) in thickness. Press the dough into the sides of the tin, then trim the edges with a knife.
- Lay the quince slices over the tart in a double layer, then generously brush the top with some of the syrup.
- Place the tart in the top part of the oven and bake for 35 minutes or until the crust is golden and the quinces are just starting to caramelise.
- Transfer the tart to a wire rack and generously brush more syrup over the top. Allow it to cool for ten minutes before removing the tin and placing on a serving plate.
- Eat warm with ice cream or custard or at room temperature with clotted cream or crème fraîche.
can this be frozen?
I’ve not tried it, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t freeze and thaw well. Once baked and cooled, place it in the freezer, unwrapped on the baking sheet, until frozen. Then wrap it up and leave in the freezer for 2-3 months. Thaw in the wrap in the fridge overnight, then you might want to pop it back in the oven again once thawed. Do let us know how it goes if you give it a try.
When you say to pare the lemon, do you mean that I should add the zest to the saucepan or the actual lemon?
Add the lemon peel to the saucepan. I’m sorry it wasn’t clear. It does actually show you in the how to section. Off to amend the recipe now.
Your quince tart was the talk of my dinner party! The crust was perfectly flaky, and that quince filling was something else—unique and almost exotic. Everyone was asking for the recipe by the end of the night. You’ve absolutely nailed it with this one; five stars all the way!
Thank you so much for your wonderful feedback. It’s always good to hear that others enjoy my recipes. Quince has become an unusual fruit these days, so it’s a good one to get people talking. And thanks for the star ratings too.
Excellent flavor and smells amazing! THis will be a nice addition to the Thanksgiving dessert table – thank you!
Yes, good one Holly. Quince tart is perfect for Thanksgiving.
Quince, such a difficult-to-find fruit. Thought I’d happened on some in the Supermarket the other day but they were knobbly pears.
Quince are used in Moroccan cuisine, which I am fond of but the fruit aren’t grown anymore. Such a pity.
Your tart looks lovely, lucky you :))
Good point Mary. I don’t remember seeing a single quince in NZ, yet we stayed with so many people who had orchards on our travels. You could always make the tart with knobbly pears instead – it would be a lot easier and quicker.
It’s an old fashioned fruit and one that I would be pleased to see come back into fashion. Of course, houses no longer have big gardens and there’s not enough room for a big old quince tree or much else!
Knobbly pears don’t quite cut it when you really want quince, do they? :))
Haha, no probably not. I’m all for bringing them back into fashion too.