Irish Inzozi: Red Currant Tartlets with Almond Cream & Fresh Berry Tart

I’ve just returned from a spontaneous trip to Ireland! I’m not actually one to travel, especially not spur-of-the-moment continent-hopping, but after over a year here in Rwanda, I do feel a need to “refresh” myself in a more conveniently systematized society, oh, once a quarter or so. Where things work the way you expect, where you can stock up on necessities (real or imagined), and where you eat yourself silly all things you’d been crazily craving. Oh, there were so many beautiful things to buy, satisfying things to eat, intriguing things to watch, magnificent sights to behold, and comforting conversations to share with a friend! Oh, the shear array of possibilities simply enjoyed! One would think I’ve just returned from the epicentre of contemporary civilization, not one of its lesser envied yet charming outposts. Maybe that’s just how much I needed it…

Of course, it all was a perfect opportunity to get baking! I originally planned to make the savory steak and kidney pie, but it seems veal kidneys are not readily available even in the pie’s place of origin. And then I saw these wee red currants… So I went with the red currant tartlets instead:)

It was absolutely wonderful using all locally grown, completely organic ingredients (I think they just call them food in Ireland). Seriously, the cream whipped up in less than a minute with a low-power gadget! Simply amazing!

But, disappointingly, the results were not as spectacular. Perhaps I wasn’t used to using such rich ingredients? Or I’m much too used to my own trusty oven at home? Whichever way, the almond cream didn’t cook as it was supposed to (creamy and a little spongy) and came out all dense and bready. Yet my friend loyally ate three on the spot...

Still, I had a lot of crust and pastry cream left over. And all these different berries were beckoning me...

So I remade the fresh berry tart! I made it once before only with blueberries because I couldn’t find all the berries at once. Even so, it was one of my favorites. But this medley of berry tart was simply glorious -- it is even on the cover of the Pie and Pastry Bible.

Luckily, this one tasted more or less the way it looked:) 

And now I'm back at "home," where I arrived to find luggage stuck in transit, giant supine cockroaches in my bathroom, car insurance nonsense to be handled, and a new emergency slowly erupting at work. But then, there are the friendly familiar faces that seem maybe a little glad (or relieved?) to see me, the much frequented cafes serving the best coffee on Earth, and even the crazy traffic that will serve as steady fodder for wacky stories some ways down the road... And I know I'll miss this place some day, if for no other reason than that reminiscing is as delicious as pie. And maybe, just maybe, I should enjoy all of this now as I'll miss it in the future...