Quince Paste And Cheese Appetizer Food

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.

QUINCE PASTE

Steps:

• Wash, peel, and core the quinces, reserving the cores and peels. Coarsely chop the flesh and transfer the fruit to a large pan. Wrap the cores and peels in cheesecloth, tie the bag with kitchen string, and add it to the pan. (The peels contain most of the fruit's pectin, which contributes to the firmness of the quince paste.)
• Pour in enough water to cover the quinces and boil, half-covered, for 30 to 40 minutes or until the fruit is very soft. Remove the bag of peels and pass the quince flesh through a sieve or food mill. (For best results, don't use a food processor as it will result in too fine a texture.) You should have about 2 1/2 pounds of fruit pulp.
• Transfer the quince pulp to a saucepan and add the sugar (ideally, you should add the same amount of sugar, by weight, as the fruit pulp). Cook and stir over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Continue cooking for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, until the paste becomes very thick and has a deep orange color. Draw the wooden spoon along the bottom of the saucepan: it should leave a trail and the quince mixture will stick to the spoon.
• Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish or line it with greased parchment paper. Transfer the quince paste to the baking dish, spreading it about 1 1/2-inch thick. Smooth the top and allow it to cool.
• Dry the paste on your lowest oven setting, no more than 125 degrees F (52 degrees C), for about 1 1/2 hours. Allow the quince paste to cool completely before slicing. (In Europe, the traditional method of drying the quince paste is to leave it in a cupboard for about 7 days. The remaining juices will continue to evaporate and render a drier paste.)
• Store quince paste in an airtight container in the refrigerator; the color will deepen with age.

MANCHEGO QUINCE SKEWERS

Steps:

• Cut the quince paste into 1-inch cubes and roll them in the crushed almonds. Cut the cheese into 1-inch cubes.
• Put a quince cube onto a toothpick, then a watercress leaf followed by a cube of cheese. Place on a platter and serve.
• Note: Parmigiano-Reggiano can be substituted for the Manchego. Quince paste can be found in cheese shops or Latin markets.

QUINCE PASTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 deg. and line a baking dish with foil.
• Scrub fuzz off the quinces and pat dry. Place in pan, cover with foil, and roast until tender, about 2 hours Transfer pan to rack. When quices are cool enough to handle, peel, quarter and core them. (A melon baller is very useful for coring, and I find that you can scoop the flesh with a spoon).
• Puree pulp in food processor with as little water as possible until smooth. Force through a large fine sieve into a liquid cup measure and measure amount of puree. Transfer to a 3-qt. heavy saucepan and add an equivalent amount of sugar.
• Cook quice puree over moderate heat, stirring constantly, until it is thickened and begins to pull away from side of pan, about 25 minutes. Pour into a lightly oiled 1 quart terrine, smoothing top with an offset spatula, and cool. (Alternatively, pour onto a lightly oiled cookie pan and spread out to about 1/4 inches thickness and let cool).
• Chill puree in terrine until set, about 4 hours. Puree in cookie pan will set without chilling. Remove from pan.
• Quince paste keeps, wrapped well in wax paper and then plastic wrap and chilled, for 3 months.
• Slice paste and serve with cheese and crackers.

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.

MANCHEGO QUINCE PASTE NAPOLEONS

Steps:

• Square off curved side of cheese wedge with a knife so it fits slicer, then slice cheese into generous 1/8-inch-thick rectangles (about 8). Arrange in 1 layer on a sheet of parchment or wax paper.
• Cut quince paste into 1/16-inch-thick rectangular slices with slicer or a knife and put on top of Manchego slices, piecing quince-paste slices together to cover cheese evenly. Make "napoleons" by stacking 2 cheese/paste layers together. Press almonds decoratively into quince paste on top.
• Cut stacks into serving pieces (about 1 1/2- by 1/2-inch rectangles or 1-inch squares), trimming edges.