Some people, planning a picnic on the beach, try to do the traditional thing: the deviled eggs, potato salad and chicken-salad sandwiches. Others just want to live through the meal. When it comes to food safety, picnics can be tricky business. And at the beach - with the hot sun beating down on your cooler - it gets even trickier. Hold the ptomaine! A little common sense will get you through.

- The first rule of picnicking is to keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. "Cold" means below 40 F. It takes a good cooler and plenty of ice to keep foods that cool on a hot day. Use ice packs, ice cubes in plastic bags or frozen water bottles or plastic milk jugs. Remember: You can never have too much ice.

- You can never have too many plastic bags, either. Bring them for trash, to lay under your blanket if the ground or sand is damp, for sitting upon on a less-than-pristine picnic bench and for food storage. A plastic tablecloth may come in handy, too.

- Bring lots to drink. Water works. It won't spoil and is good even when slightly warm, but iced tea or lemonade are traditional choices. Be aware that alcohol and sun both work to dehydrate you, and they often make for an unwise combination.

- Some fruits pack better than others: peaches, berries and melon cubes tend to turn to mush, whereas thicker-skinned fruits - grapes, cherries, nectarines, apples, pears and whole melons (still in their rind) - pack well.

- Trail mix travels well (get the kind without chocolate, which will melt) and is a good snack to feed ravenous children while you are readying the picnic. Ditto any combination of dried fruits and nuts.

- Don't forget the salt and pepper, the napkins, plastic utensils and whatever else you need. To keep from forgetting, make a list and keep it with your picnic equipment.

- For the menu: Stick with cured or smoked meats and pickled foods (artichoke hearts, pickles, olives). For dressings, eschew the mayo and use oil and vinegar or bottled Italian dressing. If you must have fish, anchovies and sardines travel well. For desserts, hard cookies work well; biscotti are perfect. Leave the cheesecake home in the fridge where it belongs.

The recipes here come from "Roadfood Sandwiches" by Jane and Michael Stern (Houghton Mifflin, 2007), who must have eaten - in their capacity as traveling writers for Gourmet magazine - at every diner, burger joint, sandwich bar and clam shack in the country. The biscotti, called "cantuccini," are from the inimitable Julia Child.

MUFFALETTA

For the olive salad:

1/2 cup coarsely chopped green olives

2 tablespoons finely diced celery

2 tablespoons finely diced carrots

1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic

2 to 3 teaspoons dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

For the sandwich:

1 large loaf fresh Italian bread (round loaf preferred)

olive oil, optional

5 to 6 ounces thinly sliced Genoa salami

5 to 6 ounces thinly sliced ham

5 to 6 ounces thinly sliced mortadella

5 to 6 ounces thinly sliced provolone cheese

The night before the picnic, mix all of the olive-salad ingredients together in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Slice the loaf of bread in half horizontally, and scoop out about half of the soft dough from the top and the bottom.

Brush the bottom of the loaf with olive oil or with juice from the olive-salad marinade. Layer on the cold cuts. Using a slotted utensil to spoon on the olive salad, top the cold cuts with as much olive salad as will fit without spilling out. Replace the top of the loaf. Cut into quarters and serve immediately or wrap and chill. Serve at room temperature.

Yield: 2 to 4 servings

Recipe from "Roadfood Sandwiches" by Jane and Michael Stern (Houghton Mifflin, 2007)

ITALIAN DAGWOOD

3 thin slices hot (spicy) sopressata

3 thin slices hot (spicy) capicola

3 thin slices prosciutto cotto (see note)

4 thin slices prosciutto crudo (see note)

1 large roll or one 6- to 8-inch length of Italian bread, sliced in half horizontally

4 slices fresh mozzarella cheese

jarred roasted red peppers, drained

olive oil and freshly ground black pepper

Fold the meat onto the bottom half of the roll. Arrange the mozzarella on the meat side and cover with the peppers. Spritz or brush the underside of the top of the roll with olive oil and sprinkle with pepper. Close the sandwich and serve immediately or wrap and chill. Serve at room temperature.

Note: Italian ham (prosciutto) is designated as prosciutto cotto, which is cooked, and prosciutto crudo (often sold simply as "prosciutto"), which is raw. The raw prosciutto is well cured and ready to eat.

Yield: 1 sandwich

Recipe from "Roadfood Sandwiches" by Jane and Michael Stern (Houghton Mifflin, 2007)

CANTUCCINI (BISCOTTI)

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1-1/2 cups whole almonds (skin on)

3 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a cookie sheet with baking parchment and set it aside.

Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl and stir to mix. Stir in the almonds. Whisk the eggs and vanilla together in a small bowl, then stir them into the flour mixture. The dough may seem dry, but it will come together as it is kneaded.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until a smooth dough forms, 1 to 2 minutes. Divide the dough in half, and shape each half into a log 12 inches long, 2 inches wide and 1 inch high. Transfer both logs to the prepared pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until slightly risen and firm to the touch. Slide the logs, parchment and all, off the baking sheet and onto a cooling rack. The logs must be completely cool before you continue with the recipe. This will take at least 30 minutes. Keep the oven on if you like, or turn it off and preheat it again when needed. (At this point, you can keep the logs for several days, wrapped in plastic, before the second baking.)

When you are ready for the second baking, line two cookie sheets with baking parchment. Make sure the oven has been preheated.

Working with a sharp, serrated knife, cut the cooled logs diagonally into thin slices (aim for 1/4 inch, but they will probably be thicker). Place the sliced cookies on the pans and bake 10 to 15 minutes or until crisp and golden. Cool on the pans.

Store for up to 1 month in an airtight container.

Yield: 4 to 6 dozen

Recipe from "Baking with Julia" by Julia Child (William Morrow, 1996)

Marialisa Calta is the author of "Barbarians at the Plate: Taming and Feeding the American Family" (Perigee, 2005). For more information, go to www.marialisacalta.com.