[Flickr: edwardkimuk] Quince Brandy View the complete recipe here » A little over a year ago, inspired by the unexpected acquisition of a bowl full of beautiful fresh quinces—and imagining what their ethereal perfume and flavor would be like in a drink—I started a small project. After removing the core and finely chopping the quinces, I placed the fragrant fruit in jars and covered it with cognac. Adding a piece of cinnamon to one jar and a few cloves to another, I sealed the jars and stuck them in the back of my liquor cabinet. And though I blogged about it at the time, I soon moved on to other projects and quickly forgot about my jars of boozy...
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Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. This week, we hear from Los Angeles correspondent Leah Greenstein of SpicySaltySweet. Take us to the market, Leah! Persimmons from Peacock Family Farm. If fall had an official color—like poppies are the official flower of California, Humuhumunukunukuapua`a is the official fish of Hawaii and Crocs are the official shoe of Mario Batali—it would have to be orange. Vibrant, warm and evocative of piles of crisp leaves perfect for jumping in, or the jack-o-lantern shrapnel you wade through the morning after Halloween, orange permeates the season. Here are some of my favorite...
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Habeñeros and Jalepeños Southern California is suffering from a case of the "in-betweens." It's practically October—normally time to trade in the grilling gear for a cast iron Dutch oven—but yesterday it felt like the middle of August. Now I realize complaining about hot weather won't inspire much sympathy when most of the country is unpacking their sweaters, but it can be a little disheartening when you're eager for those cooler weather fruits and veggies. Instead, most of the Hollywood Farmers' Market (map) still looked like late summer. The heirloom tomatoes were beautiful (and bountiful) and there were a surprising number of tables full of peaches, plums, berries, corn, and melons. There were also still lots of hot and sweet...
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