Quince Comfits and Knowle west

Posted by Andy Hamilton - 14/09/08 at 09:09:42 pm

Quince Comfits

Just finished making some Quince Comfits a recipe from the 1700s. I made it with Quinces that I picked from along the river Avon last week. The recipe came from an excellent book called “Food in England” by Dorothy Hartley. I won’t bother putting a link to anywhere to buy this as it was first published in 1954 and you are sure to find it in a second hand book shop or charity shop somewhere.

Anyway, the recipe for quince comfits is pretty simple. Chop up and Stew every part of the quinces, I used just enough water to cover them and cut them into quarters they took roughly 10-13 mins and 32 seconds to become soft. Then push them through a sieve. This takes some time and will take even longer if you have loads of quince to get through, enlist someones help if you get bored. You should be left with pips and a sort of dry pulp in the sieve and what looks like baby food in the bowl beneath. Now put this into a saucepan put the heat onto about 3 or medium and put the same amount of sugar in. To do this cover half the bottom of the pan in the pulp and measure next to it (using your eye) the same amount of sugar.

Keep stirring, the book says wait until it dries up I did not know what this meant and worried a little, it just means wait until it becomes a bit stiff. – I am sure the story of some peoples lives! Scoop this out onto a bread board and roll in shapes about the size of marker pen lids. Dust with icing sugar and this should keep until Christmas in a tin. Might try this with other fruit at some point, haw comfits anyone?

Knowle West and the food Fayre

I was told yesterday about an event in Knowle West the “Knowle West Carbon Makeover Food Fayre”. I was in two minds about going as this is considered to be one of the worst areas in Bristol. I then thought about my trepidation and decided that places are never as bad as they are made out to be. This indeed was the case with Knowle west, the streets might not have been paved with gold but they were clean (apart from near to the shops) and the people we had to ask for directions were very friendly; one girl even waved us off after giving us perfect directions. I saw a couple of people with beer cans at 10am but really this seems to be the case in many areas in cities these days. What I did see were families out enjoying the sun and lots of smiling people.

After walking for about an hour we found the Knowle west media centre and the Knowle West Carbon Food Fayre. First person we saw was the omnipresent Tea bike person. Then various other people including a food co-op, an anti plastic bag league where they teach people to make bags, a cob pizza oven, jam making and a medicinal herb woman. We were in fact the first customers of Green Medicine a lovely woman who is sharing the knowledge she gains whilst learning about herbalism. There were more stalls and people and I apologize if I have not met them as it was a great morning spent and they helped make a very relaxed yet insperational atmosphere.

We then went to the alloment and havested some of corn. A magical Sunday really.

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