Flour & Stone Poached Quince

Nadine Ingram of Flour & Stone shares a deeply personal recipe that speaks to memory, place and the quiet magic of the Australian bush.

The poached quince forms the heart of her Bush Quince Cake – layers of sponge and custard folded with poached quinces and blackberry compote – a tribute to both her upbringing and the scent of our Bush Magic candle. It’s a dish steeped in ritual, grounded in bushland and crafted with the kind of care that feels like home.

A gnarly quince tree, thorny blackberry bushes and the sound of the creek flowing is vividly nostalgic for me. That’s as warm and close to any feeling of Mother I have.

NADINE INGRAM

Flour & Stone Poached Quince

Ingredients

6 quinces
1.5 litres water
800 g caster sugar
1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
1 fresh or dried bay leaf
1 lemon, sliced thinly

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Method

Peel and core the quinces, then place the core, seeds and peel in a piece of calico or muslin cloth and tie it with natural cooking twine or string. The seeds and peel will help the quince develop a ruby colour while poaching, although it is 
not absolutely essential 
to use them.

Combine the water, sugar and vanilla bean and seeds in a large saucepan. Add the bay leaf, sliced lemon and bag of peel and seeds (if using) and bring it all to the boil over medium heat. Continue to simmer for a further 10 minutes so all the flavours infuse into the syrup. 

Drop the peeled quince into the syrup, ensuring that they are covered completely, then place a sheet of baking paper over the fruit. Bring the liquid back to the boil, then reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting so that the quince is ‘just ticking over’. Poach for 4 hours, then remove the pan from the heat and allow the quince to cool in the syrup at room temperature overnight.