I haven't posted for a while - I kept pretty busy while I was in the US for over a month, and came home to a load of work, a new relationship and a garden that begged my attention. And then there was jetlag...all excuses but they work in a pinch!

Now I'm back into the reality of Istanbul and Seattle seems like it never happened, though the Pacific Coast Iris now coming up in the garden and the two lacecap hydrangea starts that have rooted serve as pleasant reminders. But there's nothing to pull you back into the feel of a place like food, especially when it's something that is particularly difficult to find elsewhere.

Quince is just such a fruit. With its delicious fragrance and deep flavor it shouldn't be really; quince trees are beautiful, easy to grow and will survive in most of the U.S. but on those rare occasions when they show up in the markets, they are usually small, shriveled and overpriced. And nobody really knows what to do with them.

In Turkey, quinces are eaten fresh, poached, baked, and stewed with meats. Not all quinces are edible raw; some are quite astringent and I'm sure the Turkish expression ayvayi yedik (Lit. "We've eaten the quince" but more figuratively, "were screwed!") is an allusion to what happens when pieces of astringent quince began to catch in the throat on the way down. It's not a pleasant feeling!

The most common way to prepare a dessert of quince is to bake it in a heavy sugar syrup alond with its seeds, which provide pectin and cause the syrup to jel. It's nice but a bit cloying to my taste, so I prefer to poach them in a medium sugar syrup. To give them color, I use something available in Turkey called logusa sekeri, a sugar block colored brilliant red and flavored with cinnamon. These are traditionally dissolved in water and the resulting drink is given to women who have just given birth (the logusa in the name) as well as to her visitors. It was once colored with cochineal but now artificial coloring is used. One or two is plenty to color three or four quinces.

If you don't have logusa sekeri, you can use red food coloring, or just dispense with the color; the dessert will still be just fine.

After halving and coring the quinces, arrange them in a pot and  add enough sugar about 2/3 of the way to covering them, and enough water just to cover. You can add more if you like; think of the syrup in a can of peaches. Add a cinnanmon stick and 3 or four cloves, then bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for around half an hour or until the quinces are tender. Remove from heat and allow to cool slowly in the syrup and they are ready to serve. They may also be served slightly warm.

 The traditional topping in Turkey is kaymak, or clotted cream. If this is unavailable where you are, you can serve it with plain heavy cream. It won't be exactly the same but it will be delicious. A garnish of crushed pistachios really sets off the red.

In addition to poaching, quinces make a delicious jam or jelly. In Iran they are stuffed in the same way as zucchini or tomatoes; a lot of work but wonderful. They can also be stewed in tas kebab. All wonderful reasons to grab a couple pounds of quinces if you find them at an affordable price, or better yet, plant a quince tree in your garden. Their snowy white blooms are the largest of the pome fruits, and there are nearly foolproof. Help resurrect the forgotten quince, and next time we can tackle medlars...