ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI: WATERMELON FRY -- A SUMMER CHURCH SOCIAL TO REMEMBER

In my childhood summers, July brought 100-degree days and the church revival. The night breeze filled with plenty of old-time religion as it hummed back for "Precious Memories" and "Rock of Ages." At least once during the weeklong meeting your best table manners were in demand, when the visiting preacher came to dinner.

While this was a soul-renewing week, Friday night after church services was my favorite -- the "Watermelon Fry," so dubbed by Brother Jim Butler, who was host for the "Fry" in his summer gazebo.

Dozens of cold, smooth-skinned watermelons lined the long wood tables. The home-grown melons came in two succulent varieties, red and yellow. By this time, you had traded your Sunday-go-to-meeting clothes for casual-melon-eatin'-clothes, because the meltingly sweet succulent juice would soon cover everything.

The evening drew to a close with an a cappella singing contest judged by the visiting preacher. My group's favorite, "When the Saints Go Marchin' In," didn't net us many prizes, but I was always sure that we got the angels award for heart and gusto. Revival week was church at its best.

Watermelon hints: A vine-ripened watermelon's stem end scar is slightly sunken and well calloused. A truly ripe watermelon will give a thin green shaving when scraped with a fingernail.

Melon Fruit Cups

2 cups cubed watermelon

1 cup cubed cantaloupe

1 cup honeydew

2 cups peeled, sliced fresh peaches

1 cup seedless white grapes

1 cup seedless red grapes

1. Combine all fruits in a large bowl and chill for at least six hours.

2. Chill dessert dishes before filling with melon mixture.

3. To serve, fill dessert dishes with melon mixture and top with Citrus Ice, if desired.

Yield: 8 one-half cut servings.

Citrus Ice

2 teaspoons grated orange rind

2 cups sugar

4 cups water

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups orange juice

1/4 cup lemon juice

1. Combine orange rind, sugar, water and salt in pot and boil for five minutes, covered without stirring, to avoid crystallization.

2. Chill. Then add orange and lemon juices.

3. Pour mixture into a 9-x-13-inch tray and place in freezer for two hours.

4. After two hours, remove tray from freezer and beat citrus ice well. Return to freezer. Repeat the beating about two hours and again in two more hours if crystals appear on the surface. Refreeze after each beating.

5. Cover the tray tightly each time with plastic or foil. Do not store more than 24 hours if you want a satisfactory texture.

6. Beat Citrus Ice to desired consistency for topping Melon Fruit Cups. Serve immediately.

Yield: 8 servings.

Angie Holtzhouser is author of Drop Dumplin's and Pan-Fried Memories ... Along the Mississippi. Her cookbook is available at local bookstores. In addition, it can be purchased through the mail at: Drop Dumplin's, P.O. Box 10, Lilbourn, Mo. 63862. The price is $19.95, including tax and shipping.