Quince and Pineapple Sage Flowers Crumble Recipe

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Pineapple sage flowers meet the floral fruity notes of quince in my decadent Quince and Pineapple Sage Flowers Crumble. Here’s the full recipe.

Pineapple Sage Flowers

Pineapple Sage (Salvia Elegans) is a herbaceous perennial with leaves that impart the aroma of ripe pineapples. The edible herb doubles as an ornamental and adds a pop of colour when it flowers in autumn. You can read all about how to grow pineapple sage in this article.

The pineapple sage herb flowers in autumn and fills the garden with vibrant red flowers and a pop of colour. The edible flowers have a sweet nectar with a floral flavour which attracts bees and beneficial insects. Pineapple sage flowers are also edible and can be used in salads, desserts and cocktails.

Pick pineapple sage flowers early in the morning when they’re at their best. Ants love to feast inside the flowers and you’ll often find them hiding deep within the flower. To get rid of ants on pineapple sage flowers, working outdoors, spread the flowers on a tea towel leaving the ants to roam. Remove the flowers by hand and place in a container then and shake the tea towel to get rid of the ants. Repeat a few times until all the ants are removed.

For my recipe, I’ve paired the floral and fruity notes of the quince with the sweet and floral notes of freshly-picked pineapple sage flowers in a rich and decadent quince crumble.

A key step in the recipe is poaching the quince segments in sugar and water and adding the flowers during the last 15 minutes of cooking to ensure they’re not overly cooked. Once the quince is poached,  you’re left with a thick syrup full of pectin, so aromatic and delicious that you’d be tempted to eat by the spoonful. before you do, you’ll use some of it for the crumble and anything left over, you can spread it on toast or add it to cocktails such as the Quince and Rosemary Highball.

Quince and Pineapple Sage Flowers Crumble Recipe

Recipe by Corinne Mossati

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

• 1.5 kg quince (about 5 large quinces), washed, peeled, cored and cut into segments
• 3 cups white granulated sugar
• 3 cups water
• 2 medium sized lemons, freshly squeezed
• 1 cup pineapple sage flowers
• 1.5 cups of white plain flour
• 1.5 cups of brown sugar
• 150g butter

Method

For the Quince:

1. Wash, peel, core and cut the quince into segments. Reserve the peel.
2. In a large saucepan, add the quince segments, sugar, water, peel and bring to the boil.
3. Mix the ingredients to ensure the sugar is fully dissolved.
4. Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and partly cover the saucepan with a lid.
5. Simmer for 45 minutes keeping an eye on it so it doesn’t burn.
6. After 45 minutes, remove the lid and add the pineapple sage flowers and lemon juice.
7. Simmer for another 15 minutes then remove from the heat.
8. Using a slotted spoon, carefully transfer the quince and pineapple sage flowers to a baking dish or tart pan. Discard the cooked peel.
9. Strain the syrup into a clean container and leave to cool.

For the Topping:

1. In a glass bowl, combine the flour and brown sugar and mix well.
2. Cut the cold butter into small cubes and work it into the flour and sugar mixture until it resembles breadcrumbs.

Assemble the Crumble:

1. In the baking dish with the cooked quince segments, add 2-3 tablespoons of the quince syrup over the quince.
2. Top with the crumble mixture.
3. Add another 2-3 tablespoons of syrup on top of the crumble.
4. Bake in a fan forced oven at 160^oC for 30-45 minutes or until the top is brown.
5. Serve warm.

Note: The crumble can be prepared ahead and reheated prior to serving.

Pair it with a chilled dessert wine like a Botrytis wine or Muscat de Beaumes de Venise.

If you make this recipe, don’t forget to tag @the.gourmanticgarden on instagram.