1 kilogram quinces
4 cups water
½ cup sugar
¼ cup honey
1 star anise
4 whole cloves
1 vanilla pod/bean

Peel the quinces and quarter them. Cut out the core. This is quite hard work, so use a sharp knife and be careful. Pop in a bowl of water to help stop them going brown. They still will go a little brown, but they come good with cooking.

Mix together water, sugar, honey and the spices in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer, stirring until the sugar is dissolved.

Add the quince and partially cover the saucepan with a lid. You want the syrup to evaporate a little during the cooking.

Simmer on a very low heat for 20-30 minutes or until tender.

Either use straight away or refrigerate the quinces in the poaching liquid for up to a week.