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Having a French meal without some sort of cheese component isn't recommended, and I'm all for following that rule. While there's nothing wrong with just having a nice piece of cheese, something a little more composed like my CHEESE & PEPPER TOASTS is more fun and very delicious. This takes the very good idea of pressed cheese (which also often has some sort of "topping") that's popular as a simple appetizer in France, and turns it into little toast hors d'oeuvres that are a a great way to start our meal. I'll first make a goat cheese paté, so that the cheese is spreadable and extra creamy. Next I'm making a tart and ever-so-lightly spicy pepper relish for some awesome flavor contrast, followed up with chopped fresh herbs, and homemade crostini to build the toasts. These little guys have a way of being light and rich all at once, which is exactly the sort of thing we want to kick off the dinner.

The main event for this meal is definitely 40-CLOVE GARLIC CHICKEN. The short story is that I'll be using well-seasoned chicken leg quarters (chicken breast isn't right for this slow-cooked recipe) and braising that with lots of whole garlic cloves and some simple base vegetables. The result is amazingly fragrant and delicious, with super tender chicken and a simple pan gravy from all the other ingredients. But am I really using 40 cloves of garlic? Isn't that way too much? First off, I'll be using plenty of garlic, though each order will end up with somewhere closer to 15-20 cloves. And it's not too much, because the long cooking process transforms the sharp garlic cloves into tender roasted garlic, which is much milder and more luxurious. As if that wasn't enough, I'll be serving this with sauce verte, which is a very herby green sauce that's common in classical French country cooking as an accompaniment for anything from seafood to vegetables to excellent slow-cooked poultry. If you're a garlic lover you're going to extra-love this one. If you aren't, then you might be surprised at how delicious garlic is when prepared like this.

A required accompaniment to our main item this week is FRENCH COUNTRY BREAD. That roasted garlic from the chicken needs something to spread it onto, and this is it. I take this bread seriously, with two different starter doughs and a 3-day process. All that time is worth it though, as the result is wonderfully complex in flavor, with a firm crackly crust and a soft but substantial interior. I'll be serving this with some herbed butter to set things off even more. There's nothing like great homemade bread.

There are a few old-school French dishes that America really messed up, and green beans amandine is one of them. You know the one, green beans with almonds and butter. If it was winter right now I'd be talking about how I would fix things to make it the correct French version, but it's too darn hot out for that. Instead, I'll be taking the idea of this classic dish and turning it into something cool and refreshing. CHILLED "AMANDINE" GREEN BEANS isn't exactly a classic dish, but if France had Maryland weather, they'd be making this in the summer. Blanched and chilled green beans are the core of course, tossed with some fresh parsley. Instead of a rich brown butter sauce and shallots, we're going to be making a lighter shallot vinaigrette with very nice olive oil and finishing things with the required toasted almonds. This is a cool, refreshing dish that lets the green beans shine through with just enough accentuating flavors to keep things interesting.

Have you ever had a clafoutis? If you have, then you know the drill and know it's great and very French. If you haven't, here's how things work. This week's CHERRY CLAFOUTIS starts with fresh cherries of course, that part is easy to figure out. Then a rich, eggy, sweetened batter is poured on top and baked until puffy and golden. Then the whole thing deflates, and the result is a little like a cherry-heavy popover. Or maybe a little like flan? Or a dutch baby, if you know what that is? The point is, the texture is unique... not quite cake but not quite custard either. While this is often served as-is, I think a little whipped berry cream will be a welcome addition, so let's do that too. This dish is a study in simplicity, with the cherries providing all the flavor, and the "cake" taking the role of sweet, unique texture. If you've never had this dish, now's your chance.