What Is Dulce de Membrillo? Argentine Quince Paste
Sweet, firm and ruby-red. Meet dulce de membrillo, the quince paste Argentines eat with cheese, and where to find it in Amsterdam.
By Daniel MellicovskyBaker and owner, Melly's Cookiebar
Dulce de membrillo is Argentine quince paste: quince fruit cooked down slowly with sugar until it sets into a firm, sliceable block the colour of dark amber. It is sweet and faintly floral, and it has been on the Argentine table for generations. You can buy authentic dulce de membrillo at Melly's Cookiebar in Amsterdam.
Queso y dulce, the classic pairing
The most Argentine way to eat membrillo is queso y dulce: a slice of firm cheese with a slice of quince paste, often called a vigilante when it is served as a simple dessert. The sweetness of the membrillo against a mild, salty cheese is the whole point, and it takes about thirty seconds to put together.
More than a cheese board
- Spread on toast or bizcochos at breakfast
- Baked into a lattice pasta frola tart
- Folded into pastries and served beside alfajores
- Alongside a round of yerba mate in the afternoon
Membrillo or batata?
Argentine pantries usually hold both quince paste and dulce de batata, a sweet potato paste that works the same way but is softer and darker. Try both and see which you reach for. You will find them, along with the rest of our Argentine pantry, in store in Amsterdam or shipped across the Netherlands.
Taste it warm in Amsterdam
Order fresh stroopwafels to your door, or learn to make your own at a Melly's workshop in the heart of the city.
