Best Quince Cheese Recipes

MANCHEGO CHEESE WITH QUINCE PASTE

Steps:

• Cut cheese into 1/4-inch-thick wedges, discarding rind, and cut quince paste into 1/8-inch-thick rectangles. Top cheese wedges with quince paste wedges and arrange on a platter.

QUINCE PASTE AND CHEESE APPETIZER

Steps:

• Skewer 1 piece of quince paste and 1 piece of queso fresco cheese on a toothpick. Repeat with remaining quince paste and cheese.

MANCHEGO CHEESE TRIANGLES WITH QUINCE PRESERVE

Steps:

• Cut 200g/8oz manchego cheese into triangles or squares and cut the quince paste (membrillo) into small pieces. Top each slice of cheese with a piece of quince paste and serve on a flat plate.

CREAM CHEESE FLAN WITH QUINCE COMPOTE

Steps:

• Make compote:
• In large saucepan over high heat, combine 4 cups water, sugar, and cinnamon sticks, stirring until sugar dissolves. Bring to boil, then add quince, reduce heat to moderate, and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 45 minutes. Refrigerate quince (in poaching liquid) until cool. (Compote can be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated.)
• Make flan:
• In large heavy saucepan over moderately high heat, stir together 1 cup sugar and 1/4 cup water. Cook, occasionally stirring gently with wooden spoon or rubber spatula, until sugar melts and caramel turns dark amber. Working quickly and carefully, immediately pour hot caramel into cake pan, tilting to cover bottom and halfway up sides of pan. Let cool.
• Preheat oven to 325°F.
• In large bowl, using electric mixer, beat together cream cheese, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, vanilla, and salt until smooth and very creamy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, cream, and condensed milk and beat until smooth, about 2 minutes more. Pour mixture into prepared cake pan.
• Transfer pan to large roasting pan and fill roasting pan with enough hot water to come halfway up sides of cake pan. Cover roasting pan loosely with foil and pierce foil several times with fork.
• Transfer roasting pan to oven and bake 1 hour. Remove foil and continue to bake until edge of flan is set but center jiggles slightly when gently shaken, about 1 hour more. Remove cake pan from water and cool flan in pan on rack, then transfer to refrigerator to chill overnight.
• When ready to serve, run thin knife around inside edge of pan to loosen flan. Shake pan gently from side to side and, when flan moves freely in pan, invert large plate over pan. Holding pan and plate securely together, quickly invert and turn out flan onto plate. (Caramel will pour out over and around flan.) Serve with quince compote.

CROSTINI WITH BLUE CHEESE, QUINCE PASTE AND CRACKED BLACK PEPPER

Steps:

• Preheat a grill, grill pan or oven to medium-high heat.
• Toast the bread until lightly golden brown on both sides-the bread should be crisp but still tender on the inside, not brittle. Brush one side with olive oil and season with salt. Top each slice with a thin slice of cheese and a slice of quince paste and season with cracked black pepper.

MANOURI ME KYTHONI: FRIED CHEESE W/ QUINCE PRESERVES

Steps:

• Cut cheese into 1/4" slices and then cut slices into quarters. Coat slices with flour, dip in egg, and fry in hot oil, turning until golden brown on both sides.
• Allow to cool slightly, and serve with a dollop of quince preserve on each slice.

QUINCE CHEESE

Steps:

• Wash the quince. Coarsely chop the fruit but don't peel or core it. Place in a large pan and barely cover with water. Bring to a simmer and cook until soft and pulpy, adding a little more water if necessary. Let stand for several hours.
• Press the contents of the pan through a sieve or run through a food mill. Weigh the pulp and return it to the cleaned-out pan, adding an equal weight of sugar. Bring gently to a boil, stirring until the sugar has dissolved, then simmer gently, stirring frequently, for an hour and a bit until really thick and glossy. It may bubble and spit like a volcano, so do take care. The mixture is ready when it is so thick that you can scrape a spoon through it and see the bottom of the pan for a couple of seconds before the mixture oozes together again.
• If you're using small dishes or straight-sided jars, brush them with a little glycerine. This will make it easy to turn out the cheese. If you're using a shallow baking pan or something similar, line it with parchment or waxed paper, allowing plenty of overhang to wrap the finished cheese.
• When the cheese is cooked, pour it into the prepared molds or jars. To seal open molds, pour melted food-grade paraffin wax over the hot fruit cheese. Jars can be sealed with lids (see pp. 21-22). Cheese set in a shallow tray should be covered with parchment or waxed paper and kept in the fridge.
• For optimum flavor, allow the quince cheese to mature for 4 to 6 weeks. Use within 1 year.