Kythoni Glyko (Quince Spoon Sweet) - cooking recipe

Ingredients

2 1/2 lbs quinces
4 cups water
2 1/2 lbs sugar
1 lemon, juice of, the
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup blanched halved almonds
3 rose-scented geranium leaves, washed (optional)

Preparation

Peel the quinces and grate coarsely (I use my trusty box grater).
Put in a large saucepan; add water, cover and cook over moderate heat until soft.
Add sugar and cook stirring, over medium heat, until the syrup is thick.
Towards the end, add the lemon juice, the almonds, the vanilla and the rose geranium leaves (if using- do use them if you can get them).
When cool, put in large jar and store.
(Greeks just store this on the shelf, without extra processing. I don't know much about canning/storing, but I've never been sick. Still, it might be best to just keep in the fridge and spoon out as needed.) Note: This is FANTASTIC on vanilla ice cream.