Quince & Cheese.

What's the mystery fruit? They're large, like a mango and smooth.
They're Japanese quinces.
Given these by a friend from her tree, I had to make more quince paste. Perhaps it was the ripeness, but the pectin content was intense, making a very firm paste. ​

​This is a time consuming, heavy going and dangerous production (nothing wrong with that).  The only reason I'm a dab hand at it is that it's one of the few things for which I use my Thermomix.  No erupting molten paste, no risk of repetitive strain injury from hours stirring the pot.

The Spanish idea to serve quince paste alongside say, Manchego, (a firm, sheep's milk cheese) is now common to most  cheese platters.  But for cheese accompaniments that go beyond the usual...

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• Above - A wrapped Stilton is dramatic served whole, the centre being gouged out, often with a special Stilton spoon.  For this gross extravagance, I substituted a Saint Agur, nice cheese but a very much cheaper  alternative. (You then have blue cheese for weeks to come, of course.)
• Silverbeet and apple pie (Provence, France) with a slice of young soft goat's cheese.  I think stracchiatelli would also be great (if you find it).
• Blue cheeses (like Stilton) with walnuts, fresh or pickled (hence walnut bread).
• I've also known of British blue cheese served with chocolate digestives (Yes!)
• Sharp British cheese (e.g. Cheddar) with a slice of apple pie. Paul Hollywood (Great British Bake-Off) says that in his native Yorkshire ‘apple pie without cheese is like a kiss without a squeeze’. 
• Lancashire cheese with Eccles cakes (flaky turnovers filled with currants). See below, waiting to be serve with a slice of Lancashire (or...) Commemorative plate by Poole Pottery  1951 - Festival of Britain.

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• Think French-style with bread or British-style with crackers, Bath Olivers or my Ikea favourite, Knäckerbröd Råg.
• More and more people are drinking white wine with cheese.  Think sweet white with blue cheese, fortified (wine or muscat) for firm, sharp cheese.

These are all worth trying - and don't over-crowd the  cheese. Don't serve more than three varieties.  A single cheese is very elegant.
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The rugged individualists can do as they please of course but I'd suggest pears or grapes over  strawberries (no!), dried figs over glacé fruit.

By the way, if you're offering a crisp "ficele" of a baguette (long, small, round, named after a pice of string), cut it on a slant rather than serve nasty little "knobs".

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It's certainly the very, very tail-end of the quince season but if you have a Thermomix and would like the no effort recipe/method, send me a note below. 

Comment?👇 Recipe request? 👇 Or just like👍🏼