how to be neighborly

Our neighbors define neighborly.

Miss E rarely bakes without bringing us a sampling. She'll hand it to me with a comment like, "I just didn't want you to think I hadn't done anything today."

This week was no exception. She showed up on our doorstep with this antique china cakestand full of little Orange Cakes. Frankly, I would have delivered them on a paper plate or maybe even wrapped in aluminum foil. But not Miss E. She goes the whole nine yards.

I knew at first glance that these little gems would melt on contact with tastebuds.

Luckily, Miss E had the foresight to know the next words out of my mouth would be, "May I have the recipe?" So before I could ask she was reaching into her pocket to pull out a handwritten copy saying, "I thought you might want the recipe."

So neighborly.

To make Orange Cakes like Miss E's:

Use a recipe like this. Then soak 1.5 cups raisins in the juice of one fresh orange for at least 30 minutes. Spread the soaked raisins evenly across the bottom of your pan and pour the prepared batter over them.

Miss E says it's best to let them sit for a day to fully absorb the orange flavor. "But," she says, "that's if you can keep your hands off them until then. We never can."

And Husband and I couldn't either.