Dreams

Dreams, or Sonhos, are fried cakes which resemble small distorted doughnuts but much lighter in texture. There are many variations on the theme all over Portugal. Generally speaking, fried cakes are intended for the Christmas season, but in Madeira sonhos are prepared during the Carnival as well.

Ingredients

1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon butter
Pinch of salt
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
Vegetable oil for deep-frying

Confectioner’s sugar
Cinnamon

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, bring the water, butter, and salt to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the flour and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon to form a ball. Take the pan off the heat and place it in the sink half filled with water.

2. After cooling the mixture a bit, beat in the eggs, one by one. Continue beating to aerate the dough. When ready, deep-fry spoonfuls of the dough in hot oil (360°F/180°C) until golden. Remove and drain on paper towels.

3. To serve, sprinkle the sonhos with a mixture of confectioner’s sugar and cinnamon. Serve warm.

Forum Madeira Shopping Centre

Located right in the middle of the tourist area to the west of Funchal, this shopping centre with close to 20,000 m2 of floor space has around 80 shops and a car park with room for 800 vehicles. Forum Madeira is a shopping centre not to missed thanks to its modern, airy architecture and its style of galleries on several levels that converge into the central tower on an open plaza. It is located on the bustling Estrada Monumental, Forum Madeira houses 86 shops, a dozen restaurants, cafés and snack bars, 6 cinema screens and a supermarket. A feature of the building is its extensive green area of gardens on the roof, affording panoramic views over the Atlantic Ocean and the constant entertainment activities on the main plaza - mainly organised for younger visitors. In this same space, during the summer, visitors can enjoy open air cinema screenings.

Robert Baden-Powell

Lieutenant General Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell (22 February 1857 – 8 January 1941), also known as Lord Baden-Powell, was a British Army officer, writer, author of Scouting for Boys which was an inspiration for the Scout Movement, founder and first Chief Scout of The Boy Scouts Association and founder of the Girl Guides.

After having been educated at Charterhouse School in Surrey, Baden-Powell served in the British Army from 1876 until 1910 in India and Africa. In 1899, during the Second Boer War in South Africa, Baden-Powell successfully defended the town in the Siege of Mafeking. Several of his military books, written for military reconnaissance and scout training in his African years, were also read by boys. In 1907, he held a demonstration camp, the Brownsea Island Scout camp, which is now seen as the beginning of Scouting. Based on his earlier books, he wrote Scouting for Boys, published in 1908 by Sir Arthur Pearson, for boy readership. In 1910 Baden-Powell retired from the army and formed The Boy Scouts Association.

The first Scout Rally was held at The Crystal Palace in 1909, at which appeared a number of girls dressed in Scout uniform, who told Baden-Powell that they were the "Girl Scouts", following which, in 1910, Baden-Powell and his sister Agnes Baden-Powell formed the Girl Guides from which the Girl Guides Movement grew. In 1912 he married Olave St Clair Soames. He gave guidance to the Scouting and Girl Guiding Movements until retiring in 1937.

Baden-Powell made paintings and drawings almost every day of his life. Most have a humorous or informative character. He published books and other texts during his years of military service both to finance his life and to educate his men.

Baden-Powell was regarded as an excellent storyteller. During his whole life he told "ripping yarns" to audiences. After having published Scouting for Boys, Baden-Powell kept on writing more handbooks and educative materials for all Scouts, as well as directives for Scout Leaders. In his later years, he also wrote about the Scout movement and his ideas for its future. He spent most of the last two years of his life in Africa, and many of his later books had African themes. Currently, many pages of his field diary, complete with drawings, are on display at the National Scouting Museum in Irving, Texas.

Baden-Powell was keen on amateur theatricals, from Charterhouse public school where among other roles he played female operatic roles. In the army he made a speciality of female roles and would often make his own dresses. His stage specialty was what he called his skirt dance.

On July 9, 1931, Robert Baden-Powell visited Madeira. Received by the regional government, he left behind his message to the regional scouts of Madeira – “I am delighted with the appearance and discipline of the scouts of Madeira and I wish them success and blissful camping.” A bust, sculpted by Ricardo Jorge Abrantes Velosa, was placed near the Sé Cathedral in 1998 to honour Baden-Powell.

Baden-Powell lived his last years in Nyeri, Kenya, where he died and was buried on January 8, 1941. He is buried at St. Peter's Cemetery in Nyeri.His gravestone bears a circle with a dot in the centre "ʘ", which is the trail sign for "Going home", or "I have gone home". His wife Olave moved back to England in 1942, although when she died (in 1977), her ashes were sent to Kenya and interred beside her husband. The Kenyan government has declared Baden-Powell's grave a national monument.

The Vinhatico (Persea indica)

The Vinhatico, or Persea indica, is a species of plant in the Lauraceae family. It belongs to the evergreen tree genus Persea of about 150 species, of which the avocado, P. americana, is the best known.

It is found in the Azores, Madeira, and Canary Islands in Macaronesia. It is threatened by habitat loss. It is the vegetable symbol of the island of La Gomera.

The Family Lauraceae was part of Gondwanaland flora. There they spread over most of the continent. The genus Persea died out in increasingly xerophytic Africa, starting with the freezing of Antarctica about 20 million years ago and the formation of the Benguela current. The genus is extinct in Africa, save for P. indica, which survives in the fog shrouded mountains of the Canary Islands, which with Madagascar, constitute Africa's Laurel forest plant refugia.

Fossil evidence indicates that the genus originated in West Africa during the Paleocene, and spread to Asia, to South America, and to Europe and thence to North America. It is thought that the gradual drying of Africa, west Asia, and the Mediterranean from the Oligocene to the Pleistocene, and the glaciation of Europe during the Pleistocene, caused the extinction of the genus across these regions, resulting in the present distribution.

P. indica is a species exclusive to Laurisilva, since this habitat is constantly threatened by encroaching agriculture, the laurel forest animal or vegetal species had already become rare in many of its former habitats and are threatened by habitat loss.

The Eurasian Woodcock

In the higher areas of Laurisilva forest, where large trees begin to give way to moors, the Eurasian woodcock (Scolopax rusticola) also appears. This bird is very discreet and often goes unnoticed by visitors.

The Eurasian woodcock is a medium-small wading bird found in temperate and subarctic Eurasia. It has cryptic camouflage to suit its woodland habitat, with reddish-brown upperparts and buff-coloured underparts. Its eyes are set far back on its head to give it 360-degree vision and it probes in the ground for food with its long, sensitive bill, making it vulnerable to cold weather when the ground remains frozen.

The male performs a courtship flight known as 'roding' at dusk in spring. When threatened, the female can carry chicks between her legs, in her claws or on her back while flying, though this is rarely witnessed. The world population is estimated to be 14 million to 16 million birds.

The Eurasian woodcock has cryptic camouflage to suit its woodland habitat, with intricately patterned reddish-brown upperparts and buff underparts. The head is barred with black, not striped like that of its close relatives, the snipe. It has large eyes located high on the sides of its head, giving it 360-degree monocular vision.

The wings are rounded and the base of the bill is flesh-coloured with a dark tip. The legs vary from grey to pinkish. The species is sexually dimorphic, with the male much larger than the female, although the sexes cannot be separated in the field.

The most important threat to the population of the Eurasian woodcock in the breeding range is the increased fragmentation of its woodland habitat. At other times of year, a reduction in the amount of permanent grassland and an increase in the intensification of farming are also threats, and the species' susceptibility to avian influenza may have an impact in future.

The Eurasian woodcock's required breeding habitat is large, unfragmented areas of broadleaved deciduous or mixed broadleaved and coniferous forest, with dense undergrowth of plants such as brambles, holly, hazel, gorse, bracken or bilberry. Breeding territories must include a mix of dry, warm resting places, damp areas for feeding, and clearings for flight. In larger woods, wide 'rides' (open tracks through the wood) and small clearings are important. In winter, Eurasian woodcock also use scrubland during the day but in freezing weather they may use intertidal mud.

Eurasian woodcock forage in soft soil in thickets, usually well hidden from sight. They mainly eat earthworms, but also insects and their larvae, freshwater molluscs and some plant seeds.

In William Shakespeare's play Love's Labours Lost, Berowne describes himself and his friends as 'four woodcocks in a dish', after discovering they have all fallen in love when they have sworn not to.

Porto Santo

Porto Santo is the smallest inhabited island of the Madeira Archipelago. It lies in the Atlantic Ocean, at the South-western tip of Europe, about 500 km from the coast of Africa and 1000 km from Continental Europe. The flight from Lisbon to Porto Santo is approximately 1hr 30 minutes.

First discovered in 1418, by Portuguese sailors, this archipelago is formed by the islands of Madeira and Porto Santo as well as the uninhabited Selvagens and Desertas Islands. The friendliness and hospitality of its locals, the mild climate all year around, the spectacular unspoilt landscapes and the richness and variety of the natural, historical and cultural resources are just some of the reasons why you should discover this paradise yourself.

A golden isle, washed by turquoise sea and where peace and quiet reign supreme, is all you need for a truly relaxing holiday.

This Atlantic island boasts 9 km fine golden sands ideal for sunbathing and swimming.

Health and wellness go hand in hand on this magnificent beach thanks to its crystalline water and golden sand, which have unique therapeutic properties. The sand is soft, fine and smooth and consists mainly of calcium carbonate in the form of calcite, which has special thermal qualities.

The primitive beauty of the landscape enchants anyone walking the paths or cycling the island’s trails.

The safety, along with the warm welcome of its locals, the pleasures that nature has to offer, the beautiful beaches of fine sand, and the calm sea currents, turn Porto Santo island into a privileged destination.

Christmas Fruitcake

Ingredients:

·      6 oz dried pruneschopped

·      6 oz dates chopped

·      8 oz dark raisins

·      6 oz golden raisins

·      6 oz currents

·      ¾ cup butter

·      1 cup dark brown sugar

·      ¾ cup molasses

·      ½ cup coffee liqueuror ½ cup strong black coffee

·      Zest and juice of 2 oranges

·      8 oz glace cherries

·      8 oz candied citrus peel

·      8 oz toasted pecans roughly chopped

·      2 tsp allspice

·      2 tsp cinnamon

·      2 tsp powdered ginger

·      1 tsp cloves

·      2 tsp nutmeg

·      3 tbsp cocoa

·      3 eggs

·      1 1/3 cups all purpose flour

·      ½ cup ground hazelnuts or almonds

·      ½ tsp baking powder

·      ½ tsp baking soda

Instructions:

1.   In a large saucepan melt the butter over medium heat and add the raisins, dates, prunes, currents, brown sugar, molasses, spices, coffee liqueur (or coffee) and the orange zest and juice.

2.   Bring to a gentle boil and very slowly simmer for 10 minutes.

3.   Remove from heat and allow to cool for 30-45 minutes.

4.   When cool stir in the beaten eggs.

5.   Sift together, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda.

6.   Add the ground nuts and fold through the boiled mixture. Fold in cherries, citrus peel and pecans. Pour into prepared baking pan. You can decorate the top with additional pecan halves, cherries etc., if you like.

7.   Bake at 300 degrees F for 1 ½ to 2 hours depending upon the size of your pan. Mine took the full two hours in a 10 inch spring form pan.The cake should feel firm to the touch at the center and a wooden toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean. The cake should be cooled completely in the pan on a wire rack before removing.

8.   At this point you can poke small holes in the top and bottom of the cake with a fork and pour on 4 ounces of dark rum or your favorite whiskey, half on the top, wait ten minutes, then flip it over and pour the remaining half on the bottom.

9.   Soak several layers of cheesecloth in additional rum if you like and wrap completely around the cake, then cover with several layers of plastic wrap and store in a COOL place.

10.     When serving, you can add a layer of marzipan or if you have decorated the top with fruit and nuts, brush with a simple glaze of equal parts water and sugar boiled together for about 10-15 minutes.