Required Reading

        If a camping trip is on your schedule for the second half of summer, check out Recipes for Roughing It Easy (The Dian Thomas Co.; $14.99) by Dian Thomas.

        Ms. Thomas offers suggestions for those wanting to take on the great outdoors with ease and flair, the Associated Press reports. She offers recipes that let campers try more creative ways of cooking their favorite dishes, such as hamburgers on a shovel, pudding in cones and chicken prepared in a backpack or on the manifold of a car engine.

        For the beginner outdoorsman, Ms. Thomas goes through all the basic equipment for the optimum nature cooking experience.

The Pits

        You bought avocados, so what now?

        Cut an avocado in half lengthwise, going all the way around the pit. Twist the halves in opposite directions until they separate. To remove the pit, carefully strike it with the sharp edge of a heavy knife; turn the knife to dislodge the pit.

        Score the skin of each piece twice lengthwise with the tip of the blade, careful not to cut into the pulp. Peel away the strips.

        To prevent the avocado from discoloring, brush it with lemon or lime juice. For later use, tightly wrap avocado halves with plastic wrap (Saran Wrap works best; some brands of plastic wrap are more permeable) before storing in the refrigerator. Exposure to air turns the avocado brown.

Learn to Cook

        These cooking schools offer classes different times of the year. Call for schedules and prices.

        • Cooks' Wares, Shops at Harper's Point, Symmes Township. 489-6400.

        • Cooking School at Jungle Jim's Market, Fairfield. 829-1919, Ext. 3.

        • Culinary Sol, Rookwood Commons, Norwood. 841-2665.

        • Dorothy Lane Market School of Cooking, Dayton. (937) 434-1294.

        • The Great Indoors, Springdale, 346-1506.

        • Kremer's Market Cooking Classes, Crescent Springs. 341-1067.

        • Restaurant Equipment Outlet's Cooking Classes, Northside. 542-5900.

        • Wild Oats, Rookwood Commons, Norwood. 531-8015.

        • Williams-Sonoma Grand Cuisine, Kenwood Towne Centre, 793-3445.

Timely Tip

        Finding a ripe cantaloupe at the store is important because they don't ripen much once they are off the vine. A ripe melon will be yellow or tan — not green — and have a sweet, perfumed aroma near its stem end. Shake the melon to check for loose seeds (indicating it is too ripe) and press the end opposite the stem end. It should yield considerably.

        If you do have to select from a batch of under-ripe melons, choose one heavy for its size. Once home, leave it at room temperature until it softens and becomes fragrant. The risk: Some will go from unripe to rotten without an edible interval.

— Chicago Tribune

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