Grumpy in Madeira

Bom Dia,

Well, it’s time for another Festa. This time we’re off to Porto Moniz. It’s on the North Coast. The place is mostly known for the natural rock pools and the stunning scenery.

We’re not going until 4ish so I’m going to make Rosemary and Garlic bread before we leave. I hate all the kneading, so this recipe is no knead bread and the two hour method. I used the veggie FUN kitchen recipe but I changed it to suit myself.

INGREDIENTS:

1 tbsp active dry yeast

520g bread flour

355g hot water (no hotter than 120 degrees)

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp fresh rosemary chopped (from our garden, I washed well in case cookie pissed on it)

1 tbsp garlic chopped

METHOD:

Add yeast to hot water and let it sit for 5 mins. It will start to get a little foamy.

Remove the leaves from 2 or 3 stems of fresh rosemary. Finely dice and set aside. Finely chop the garlic.

Put the flour in a large mixing bowl. Add the chopped rosemary and garlic. Sprinkle with the tsp of salt and mix well.

Pour the water/yeast mixture into the flour and mix well. Work the mixture into a sticky but firm ball of dough, you can use your hands……it’s not classed as kneading!

Cover with a damp cloth or cling film and let sit for 1 hour. The dough should double in size.

Just before the dough has risen, heat the oven to 450f/232c. I set my oven to 200c and it was perfect, you know your oven!!!!

I lined my baking dish with parchment paper. I then worked the dough on it into a round ball, then flattened it slightly to suit my dish.

Score the top with a straight line or an X, cover with foil and bake for 30 mins. After 30 mins remove the foil and bake for a further 5/10 mins or until the crust is golden.

Let cool before slicing.

It was the first time I’ve made it. It was delicious.

We set off for Ponta do Sol to pick up our drinking buddy’s Mack & Annie.

On the way to Porto Moniz, we drove through a large canyon called Serra de Agua. It was impressive the way the clouds came over the top of the mountains.

When we got to Porto Moniz it was busy with tourists but nothing like it was going to get. That’s the reason we went early to get parked up.

The sea had a big swell, there was lots of white water around the rocks, it was stunning.

There were lots of activities, food stalls and bars.

The PIG was delicious!!!!

We wondered about, drank lot’s of Cerveja, then had some pig, chicken and vinho. It was getting busier by the minute. Then the music started.

First up was a woman named Catarina Melim. She was fantastic. She had a great voice and sang some classic rock songs in English and Portuguese.

She was a great warm up act for the main event, a band called Xutos e Pontapes. They don’t sing in English but are a great rock band.

So with the rock music, Dancing, lots of Cerveja, Vinho and Poncha we were very hot and happy.

It had filled up a bit since we arrived too.

We had a great night and to finish off, there were fireworks. It was a spectacular display, made better with the white water below.

We got back home very late/early hours. It was a brilliant night but it took me 3 days to get over it.

🥴

Roll on the next Festa!!!!