Pumpkins~

I have been wanting to visit the Tanaka Farm in Irvine, California for several years but it was just one of those things that kept getting pushed to the back burner. Well, last week I was in the area and made a point to stop there knowing the strawberries were long gone but hoping to see pumpkins.

I took my teen daughter with me. Immediately upon exiting the car she wrinkled her nose and asked, "What IS that smell?"  If you are a fan of the television series The Office you might remember an episode where Angela and Andy accompany Dwight to his beet farm and once inside the barn Andy asks the same question, to which Angela replies, "manure." lol!

There is a small corn maze, fields of pumpkins, a wagon ride, and a small petting 'zoo'. We walked around and gazed at the rows of pumpkins on the ground.

Happily, there was everything I had hoped to see. We spotted scarecrows....

and tall rows of corn....

My daughter noticed the dirt, hay and occasional fly, not to mention the farm 'aroma'...needless to say, I do not think she will be marrying a farmer and living off the land! Haha~

We have never seen so many pumpkins unless they were stacked at the grocery store. I was glad I had my camera with me.

I suggested we walk through the corn maze and she actually agreed to go with me, unlike the eyerolling I would have got if she was still 15! We entered the maze...

I teased her about needing to use GPS to find our way out, but within minutes we came to the exit. Short, but sweet.

Young children were skipping from pumpkin to pumpkin trying to choose the perfect one to take home. Wheelbarrows stood waiting to help carry the orange treasure~

It was fun to see the small varieties available too.

        All this fresh air got us in the mood for baking pumpkin bread. So, when we got home we got out one of our trusty cookbooks called The American Country Inn and Bed & Breakfast Cookbook.

We measured out 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup oil and 1 cup pumpkin.

Next, sift together 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 1/2 teaspoons each of salt, cinnamon, baking powder & nutmeg. I like freshly grated nutmeg. Add 1/4 tsp ginger. 

Combine with liquid mixture. Fold in 1 cup raisins (if desired), 1/2 cup nuts and 1/4 cup water. Turn into well oiled loaf pan.

You can see that I only added walnuts to one side since hubby and daughter don't like them, but I do!

Bake in 350 degree oven 65-75 minutes. Cool in pan 5 minutes, then cool on rack.

I could not wait to cut into the loaf! I used my Mary Engelbreit cup for afternoon tea; the doily pattern seems nicely homespun and the sentiment is perfect.

*Home is Where The Heart Is*

I toasted a thick slice of pumpkin bread and inhaled the fragrant steam from my cup.

It is not a fancy teacup, but reminds me of treasured times in the kitchen baking with my daughter.

And the best ingredient to bake with is love!

The whole house smells of pumpkin, nutmeg and cinnamon~

I am sharing this post with:

Trisha at Sweetology
Martha's Favorites Teacup Tuesday
Rose Chintz Cottage
Artful Affirmations