Each quince season I like to make at least two batches of this quince chutney, and hopefully poach some for cakes, tarts, crumbles etc.
This year I was beginning to worry I had missed quince season altogether as none of my regular green grocers had any in Autumn. As soon as Winter arrived, they appeared in the stores (near me anyway), I’m not sure if it’s technically late in the season for them, or if in the past I was just often lucky to find them earlier.
I originally found some really small quince, that looked a little sad honestly, and I wasn’t sure even a quarter of my wish list of quince recipes I wanted to make would be fulfilled. Luckily I soon found some really big quince a few weeks later at another shop and my hopes for all the quince wish list recipes was restored.
I made a double batch or so (it sort of ended up being double and a half of the recipe) of my favourite quince chutney. I now have 12 jars of it so that should be enough to get me through to next quince season!
Next was to poach some quince. I often end up overdoing this and have so much poached quince I don’t know what to do with all of it. This year I have only done one batch, though the four quince I poached were so spectacularly large they barely all fit in the baking tray at once.
I poached them using the recipe for Fragrant Quince Butter with Rose from my Cosy Winter Bakes eBook, and just didn’t finish off the recipe to make quince butter, but rather left them as poached quince. (However you can use whatever poached quince you have using whatever recipe you prefer or always use to make the muffin recipe below.)
I decided to make muffins with some of the poached quince, as after all that fuss poaching them I felt a more simple recipe to use them in was in order. This is a great recipe to use if you have a bit of poached quince left from something else, or get into a bit of a quince recipe rut after poaching lots of quince.
I used the chai spice mix from Gewürzhaus called Raj’s Majestic Chai Masala. If you can’t find anything similar you could also use 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp ginger and 1/2 tsp ground cardamom.
Chai Spiced Quince Muffins
Ingredients:
300g self raising flour
165g panela sugar (or brown/muscovado sugar)
2.5 tsp chai spice mix
1.5 cups roughly chopped poached quince (drained of any syrup/poaching liquid)
1 tsp vanilla extract
125ml milk
125ml oil (any flavourless oil will do e.g. canola, vegetable etc)
x2 eggs
slivered almonds, for garnish
Method:
Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius and line a 12 hole muffin tray with muffins cases.
In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar and chai spice mix. Then add the roughly chopped quince.
In a medium bowl or jug whisk together the vanilla, milk, oil and eggs until well combined.
Add the oil mixture to the dry ingredients and gently mix with a wooden spoon until just combined.
Divide the batter evenly between the 12 muffins cases in the tin, and generously top each muffin with some slivered almonds.
Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the muffins spring back to the touch.
Allow to cool on a wire rack, however they are lovely eaten warm.
Muffins are best eaten the day they are made, however any leftovers will freeze well for future muffin enjoyment.
Makes 12 muffins.
