Autumn brings quince and quince bring me happiness. Poached quince are so incredibly delicious and worth doing if only for the magical transformation of the colour as they cook – from creamy yellow to a deep ruby. 

How to prepare quince:

- They are ready to pick when they are a creamy yellow. Don’t worry if they have some black spot on them.

- Peel with a vegetable peeler or sharp knife. Halve or quarter them with a sharp knife, being careful as they are VERY hard to cut through the core. I leave the core in at this stage as it’s much easier to remove this cleanly once the fruit is cooked and softened.

- Lay out in an ovenproof dish. Mix together ¾ - 1 cup sugar, ¼ cup white wine/sherry, or other sweet wine and one tablespoon with enough warm water to cover the quince. Pour over the fruit until just overed. Cover dish tightly with foil.

- Bake in oven set at 160 C until softened – about 3-4 hours.

Use poached quince for dessert with cream or icecream, in baking, on pastry, to have alongside roast lamb or pork etc etc.