Breezes Along the River

 Our family was invited over to dinner by some good friends this past week on a perfect evening.

 They have a little cottage right on the Neuse River with a mammoth oak tree next to the screened porch. See how it spreads out and dwarfs the house? Lovely!

 The tree has a fine wooden swing that Julia enjoyed. She still cowered before my camera lens!
They have a sweet, gentle Lab called Jeb. Julia made friends via the tummy-rub method.

 We were this close to the river. During Hurricane Irene they lost a good bit of beach, sadly, but it's still very nice. A couple of kite surfers were jumping around in the water when we arrived.

 We enjoyed hearing tales of this quiet area in the county before Oriental became a tourist attraction and before riverfront property became desirable. There was a time when large tracts of land here were sold for a song. The mosquitoes and snakes were just as bad back then, the roads were worse, and life was free of electricity and other services, including neighbors from Long Island and Connecticut. But the river was just the same -- lovely and breezy. Our friend reminisced to us of his childhood, coming here with his dad fifty years ago for weekends of shooting 22's and fishing.
We had a delightful dinner on the porch while the river breezes brushed by and the sun set. The kids went for a walk on the beach in twilight. Coffee was made, and pie was thoroughly enjoyed. Speaking of coffee, I snapped a few photos of their simple, single-cup coffee press!
Fill the plastic press with a paper filter and some ground coffee.

 Pour in boiling water and stir well with the plastic stirrer.

 Push the plunger down ~

 And there appears a lovely cup of fresh, hot coffee, with less clean-up, I'll add. Very good.

And here's a pie idea for you, from my friend -- it was so very delicious. Make your pie shell and partially bake it. In the bottom put 1/3 cup chopped pecans, 1/3 cup chopped coconut flakes, 1/3 cup melted butter, 1/3 cup brown sugar. I'm not quite sure if she also baked that or not ... but on top of that you spoon on chocolate pudding. I like the cook-and-serve pudding made with milk. Chill the pie. Put whipped cream on top if you like.
The flavor of the pecans and yummy butter/sugar combo really gives this pie a fabulous flavor kick that many chocolate pies lack. I should have gotten a photo, but you know why I didn't; we ate it too fast!