Applesauce can begin as a soothing breakfast fruit and end as a dessert, tucked inside a buckwheat crêpe or made into the glorious dessert.

　　The pressure cooker in tandem with the food mill eliminates the need to peel and core the apples. You can have applesauce in 15 minutes.

　　Quinces give applesauce an elusive perfume and turn it rosy pink.

Ingredients

　　2 quinces, cut in sixths for a pressure cooker or thinly sliced for for a food mill

　　3 pounds apples, quartered

　　honey or sugar

　　fresh lemon juice

　　1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, cardamom, or allspice or a pinch of ground cloves, optional

　　If you're using a food mill, put the apples and quince in a pot, add 1/3 cup water, cover securely, and cook until the apples are completely tender, about 20 minutes. Or put them in a pressure cooker with 3 tablespoons water, bring the pressure to high, and cook for 10 minutes. Release the pressure or let it fall by itself. Pass the cooked fruit through the food mill into a clean pot. Taste and sweeten with honey if the sauce is tart or add the lemon juice if the apples are too sweet. Add the spices. Simmer for 5 minutes, then cool. If you're not using a food mill, peel and core the apples and quince first, then cook until they're broken down into a sauce.

　　From Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison. Copyright © 2007 by Deborah Madison. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved.Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone and The Savory Way, each earned the IACP's Julia Child Cookbook of the Year award. Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone also received a James Beard Award, as did Local Flavors, her most recent book. She is also the author of the James Beard Award nominee This Can't Be Tofu! and The Greens Cookbook, which is now a classic. She lives in Galisteo, New Mexico.