I lucked out in that my neighbor has a quince tree. The tree is gorgeous and while it doesn’t produce a great amount of fruit it does give enough for me to make two pies. One for her for sharing her quince, and one for my family. It’s the perfect pie for Thanksgiving as we sit and share stories of grandmother’s pies, silly annedotes, and how much we miss her presence at these family gatherings. This pie makes it feel like she is still with us. And there is nothing better than filling grandmother’s love and presence at the holidays.

 

Ingredients
For the filling:
5 c. water
1 c. maple syrup (grade B preferable)
3/4 c. sugar
4-5 quinces, peeled, cored & cut into quarters
1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped and pod reserved
2 tsp. cornstarch

For the biscuit topping:
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/3 c. fine yellow cornmeal
1/3 c. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
12 oz. (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1 c. heavy cream
3 Tblsp. slivered almonds

Directions
For the filling: Place water, maple syrup, sugar, quinces, vanilla seeds & pod in a large stock pot and simmer over medium heat. Cover the pot with parchment paper and cook until the quinces are soft and rosy pink, 1 1/2-2 hrs (Don’t fret if your quinces don’t turn pink…mine only turned a very subtle pink while boiling, then turned more vibrant once baked. Just make sure they are soft). Discard the vanilla pod and preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

For the topping: In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or knife and fork until mixture resembles cornmeal ‘n’ peas. Make a well in the center and pour in the heavy cream. Stir with a wooden spoon until combined and the dough comes together. Wrap in plastic wrap and put in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the quinces to a medium bowl. Reserve 1 c. of the poaching liquid for the pie (and reserve the rest for later because it is SO GOOD). Add the 1 c. of poaching liquid and the cornstarch to the quinces and stir to combine. Pour the mixture into a 9-inch pie plate.

Arrange heaping spoonfulls of the biscuit topping around the outer edge of the pie, leaving a little whole in the middle for steam to escape (and for a little peak at the pink filling!). Sprinkle the almonds on top and bake until the liquid is bubbling and the biscuit topping is golden, approximately 50 minutes.  Let cool completely and serve with maple whipped cream.

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Quick tip: Sometimes finding quince is difficult. Try the Farmer’s Market or Whole Foods. If that doesn’t work use apples and quince jam for a pie filling for this biscuit crust.

Recipe and image courtesy of Nothing In The House.