
Warming Winter Spiced Quince Jam
Zack MumaShare
Authored by Jodi Roth

This recipe was adapted from the Quince Puree recipe in Scandinavian Comfort Food by Trine Hahnemann.
Ingredients:
- 1kg/2lb 3oz quinces, peeled and cored
- 2 litres/8.5cups water
- 425g/1.25cups honey
- Grated zest and juice of 2 lemons

Optional:
- 1tsp cinnamon (heaping, probably more like 1.5tsp)
- 2tsp grated frozen ginger
- 0.25tsp grated nutmeg
- 1tsp grated frozen turmeric
- 0.25tsp cardamom
- 1tsp vanilla (I used my homemade vanilla extract & threw in 4 already used beans to infuse during the boil, then removed them before jarring the jam)
I chose to substitute honey in for the cane sugar this recipe called for, so if you want to use cane sugar the amount listed in the original recipe is 500g/2.5cups light cane sugar per 1kg/2lb 3oz boiled quince.

I also made this during winter (January 2025) with some frozen, unsweetened quince puree I had saved from fall, so I used about 2kg frozen quince puree (about the equivalent of both the quince and water components above), and I added some warming winter spices as outlined in the optional section above.
In the original recipe, one is to peel and core the quince, then place them into the saucepan and add the water. Bring that to a boil and then cover and let simmer until very tender when pierced with a small, sharp knife or fork.
Then remove the quince from the water, weigh them and calculate the sugar amount using the ratio mentioned above. Use a food processor to blend the quince into a puree, then in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, add the puree, the sugar (I used honey here), lemon zest, lemon juice and other spices if desired.

Since I was using an already-made quince puree, I jumped right into the saucepan portion of this recipe and I also guesstimated/taste-tested to decide on my final honey and spice amounts by bring the mixture up to temp and then sampling a bit. The optional quantities above do reflect the final amounts that I put into my 2kg of puree, to give you a good idea where you could start. My recipe turned out quite lovely with the spices being present and noticeable, but not at all overpowering - after a day of resting, the cardamom and nutmeg were stronger, so if you don't like those spices as well, I'd recommend halving the amounts I used.
Boil your puree mixture over low heat, stirring constantly to avoid burning, until the mixture thickens into a jam. Pour into warm, sterilized jars and seal.
Enjoy your quince jam on toast, oatmeal, ice cream, or granola (my personal favourite option) or anything else you'd use jam or a fruit spread on or in!
Want to grow your own quince tree? We love our Quince Seedlings, or if you want to grow a grafted, known quince variety, we have Grafted Quince Trees as well!