Ginger-Poached Quince Tarte Tatin recipe, from Joanne Chang
From the editors of Food & Wine magazine: Juicy and fragrant quince are draped in buttery caramel and fanned atop golden, flaky pastry in this centerpiece-worthy dessert.
A lovely alternative to Thanksgiving pie, this quince tart is from pastry chef Joanne Chang of Flour Bakery + Cafe in Boston. Serve slices warm with a generous dollop of cinnamon crème fraîche and you have one very autumnal treat.
For more recipes check out the "Sunday Morning" 2023 "Food Issue" recipe index!
Ginger-Poached Quince Tarte Tatin
by Joanne Chang
Active time: 1 hour
Total time: 3 hours 5 minutes
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients:
6 1/2 cups water, divided
3 cups granulated sugar, divided
1 (3-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
2 pounds ripe quince (4 to 5 fruit), peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cored
1 (14-ounce) package frozen puff pastry (such as Dufour), thawed
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 (8-ounce) container crème fraîche
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions:
Stir together 6 cups water, 2 cups sugar, and ginger in a large pot. Bring to a boil over medium-high; cook, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low, and add quince. Adjust heat as needed to maintain a very gentle simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, until quince is tender but not mushy and a paring knife slides easily through quince flesh, 25 minutes to 1 hour depending on ripeness and variety of quince. (Check for doneness every 10 minutes after the quince has poached for 25 minutes.) Let quince cool in syrup until warm, about 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll puff pastry out to 1/8-inch thickness; cut into a 10-inch round; discard scraps. Chill pastry until ready to use. Grease a 9-inch round baking pan with butter; set aside.
Stir together remaining 1/2 cup water and remaining 1 cup sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high; boil, undisturbed, until mixture begins to brown around edge of pan, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to medium; cook, swirling pan often, until caramel is dark amber and temperature reaches 365°F on a candy thermometer, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, and whisk in butter and salt. Immediately pour mixture into prepared pan, and swirl pan until bottom is evenly coated in caramel. Set aside.
Drain quince, reserving syrup for another use, if desired. Arrange quince, cut side up, tightly packed in baking pan. Place pastry over quince, tucking edges into pan so it fits snugly around fruit. Bake in preheated oven until pastry is deep golden brown, 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool 15 minutes.
Whisk together crème fraîche and cinnamon in a small bowl. Invert quince tart onto a rimmed platter. Serve warm with cinnamon crème fraîche.
Where can you find quince?
Quince are available at Asian and Middle Eastern grocery stores or online at persianbasket.com. Select fruit with smooth yellow skin. And definitely don't toss out the leftover syrup! Reserve it for adding to cocktails or drizzling over waffles or berries.
What's the best way to thaw puff pastry?
It's best to thaw frozen puff pastry slowly in the refrigerator overnight, so be sure to factor that in when preparing to make this dessert.
Notes from the Food & Wine Test Kitchen
It takes just seconds for caramel to go from great to burnt so you want to be sure you don't take it too far. At the same time you want to make sure you get a nice deep amber brown color because if you don't take the caramel far enough it won't take on the characteristically bittersweet edge you want.
The time required for the quince to soften in the poaching liquid depends on the variety of quince and degree of ripeness — check for doneness early and often.
Make ahead
While it's best to bake the tarte tatin fresh, the quince can be poached ahead of time and refrigerated in its own syrup for up to 1 day.
Originally appeared in Food & Wine magazine, November 2023. Reprinted with permission.
