FROM THE COOKBOOK OF PHILIPPINE WELSER
»wilt du Ainen kitten saft machen – Ertlich nym die kittin las/ schelen, schneidts bis auff den/ stan hitz in ainem glassierten/haffen guis ain schens saubers/wasser darauff ain zwen finger/ under halb der khutten, Las als/dan sieden, under ainer gutten/ glynetten feur sietzbis als die/kittin wol waich werden, vnd die/ prie zimlich dick, darnach seichts/ durch ein Lyne duech truckh die/ khyttin zimlich wol, es schat nit/ wan die gleich trueb ist, es wirt/ nur dester schener, als dan mes/ den saft ab nim auff ein/ achterlin des safts ain pundt zu-/ chkir wilt dus aber syeser haben/ so magstu mer zuckher nehmen/ dar nach secz jber ain gutz 7 fuyer las flux sieden/ wan Du wilt wissen, wan er/ gesotten genug ist so nim ein/ silberen leffel,dunckh den leffel/ in den saft, las kiel werden vun wa ver es ain heyttl auff/ den leffl macht, so ist er ge/ sotten genug. Aber alewyl er nu senig ist, So ist er noch nit guet/ als dan magstu jn gyesen jn/ we du wilt so wirft er ain fain jber. den nym ab«
TransCript
(If you want to make quince juice – take the quinces, peel them, and slice them except for the core; heat them in a glazed vessel and pour nice, clean water two fingers wide below the quinces; let them cook until they are soft and the broth is rather thick; then strain it through a cloth and squeeze the juice out of the quinces; it does not matter if the juice becomes a little cloudy; measure the juice and add a pound of sugar (500 g) for each eighth of a litre; use more sugar if you want it sweeter. Then put it back over the fire; if you want to know whether it has cooked long enough, dip a silver spoon into the juice and let it cool; if you see a thin layer of skin forming, is has been boiling long enough. If the juice is too watery, it is not good yet. Then fill it into jugs or bottles as you like; and skim off the foam.)
Today the quince might be viewed as a rather antiquated fruit which our grandmothers used to make into quince jelly – a firm, apple-like, block of jelly that lasted forever – but the quince was a star back in antiquity: the golden apple that Paris presented to Helen in Greek mythology is said – depending on the translation – to have been a quince; and the forbidden fruit in paradise that was never mentioned by name was most probably this seducingly fragrant, golden-yellow fruit.
The name ‘quince’ (Old High German qitina and kutinna, Middle High German also kutin) derives from the Greek-Latin malum cydonium (also, ‘Kydonian apple’). The relationship to the Greek city of Kydonia in northwestern Crete is probably based on folk-etymological interpretation. Quinces can be compared to apples and pears, as they are related to both fruits. They are all members of the rose family.
Aside from their pleasant taste, quinces also offer a wide range of healthy ingredients: potassium, sodium, zinc, iron, manganese, and fluorine, which are responsible for our body’s cell metabolism and oxygen transport, amongst other tasks. They also have a lot of vitamin A, B, and C, which are all vital to a healthy immune system, as well as tannins, mucins, and dietary fibre for good digestion and against coughs. The dietary fibre pectin in quinces lowers our cholesterol levels, binds pollutants, and helps to detox the body.