Welcome quince!

Just in time for the first snows of December…golden, fragrant quince has arrived. This fruit is related to apples and pears, all members of the rose family. However unlike its cousins, it is not easy to work with nor is it usually eaten raw. But those who take the time to peel it, chop the hard, white flesh and cook it down with sugar are rewarded with a gorgeous amber rose-hued preserve that is best eaten by the spoonful, preferably with Manchego.

You can find les collines at these gems of stores: In Columbia County, at the Hillsdale General Store in Hillsdale and Olde Hudson in Hudson, and in northern Dutchess County at Harney & Sons in Millerton.

Crabapple is nearly gone for the season! We will miss its lush garnet tartness…til next year. But cider sage will be with us through spring and quince will get us through the worst of the winter. Look for a new flavor in January…