Apple and Pear Paste

• • • Makes 2 pounds (907 g) • • •

Since I enjoy making cotognata (Quince Paste, page 158), I was inspired to try the same technique with the fruit’s milder cousins, apples and pears. The result is this beautiful paste, which is perfumed with bay leaf. The paste glows like amber and, like quince cotognata, it makes an excellent accompaniment to cheeses. I like to serve this paste with good, pungent runny cheeses like Taleggio, robiola, and La Tur.

2 pounds (907 g) Gold Rush or other dense-fleshed, sweet-tart apples

1 pound (454 g) ripe but firm Bosc pears

Peel and juice of 1 small lemon

1 cup (237 g) apple cider

½ cup (118 g) water

About 3 cups (680 g) sugar

½ vanilla bean

2 bay leaves

Vegetable oil or butter, for coating parchment paper

Equipment

Standard or immersion blender

Kitchen scale

1 • Peel and core the apples and pears, and remove the seeds. Cut the flesh into 1-inch pieces and put them in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot. Add the lemon peel and juice, and pour in the cider and water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer, and cook, stirring often, until the fruit is completely tender, about 1 hour. Let the mixture cool slightly, and then puree with an immersion blender. Or puree it in a standard blender, in batches if necessary.

2 • Weigh the fruit puree; you should have about 2 pounds (907 g). If you have more, measure out 2 pounds (907 g) and set aside the rest for another use (you can enjoy it as pear-applesauce). Return the puree to the pot.

3 • Weigh out three-quarters of the weight in sugar—1½ pounds (680 g), or 3 cups. Add it to the pot with the puree and stir to combine. Split the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds into the pot. Add the pod as well, along with one of the bay leaves. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring, until the sugar is completely dissolved. Continue to cook, stirring often to prevent burning, until the puree is very thick and has turned several shades darker—an hour or longer. Watch out for spattering, and lower the heat if it gets volcanic. The paste is done when it pulls away from the sides of the pan as you stir. It will be a glorious, translucent golden-brown color and will smell like heaven. Remove and discard the bay leaf and the vanilla bean pod.

4 • Preheat the oven to 175°F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides. Lightly coat the paper with a thin film of oil. Pour in the apple and pear paste and smooth out the top. Set the remaining bay leaf on top in the center. Bake until the paste is nicely set and firm to the touch, about 1 hour. Let cool to room temperature, then cover with plastic wrap and let it sit out overnight to set completely.

5 • When the paste is completely firm and set, remove it from the pan. Slice into squares or rectangles; or use lightly oiled cookie cutters to cut out decorative shapes. Wrap the pieces of paste tightly in plastic wrap and store them in the refrigerator. Stored this way, they will keep for at least 6 months. (Store in the freezer for up to 1 year.) Bring the paste to room temperature before serving.