Enjoy the beautiful weather and take a quickly prepared dinner outdoors. A handful of rosemary almonds to nibble on, cold red pepper bean salad, and a baguette piled high with red-wine vinegar-seasoned tuna salad will get you into the fresh air fast. Carry a bag of Norman vanilla sables with you for a fantastic dessert.

• Provencal Rosemary Almonds Recipe
• Red Pepper Bean Recipe
• Pan Bagnat Recipe
• Vanilla Sables Recipe

This dinner is as relaxed as an evening of breathing in sea air and listening to crashing waves on an oceanside veranda. Add a good bottle of sparkling wine, and you'll feel like you're on a tropical holiday.

• Avocado and Romaine Salad Recipe
• Lobster Bisque Recipe
• Banana Tarte Tatin Recipe

This meal puts a sophisticated French twist on the classic meat and potatoes family pleaser. What could be better than roasted, herbed potatoes, seasoned carrots, and steak with Cognac sauce? Follow it with a homemade dark chocolate torte and you have your own family favorite!

Hint: Although the chocolate torte recipe calls for a homemade fruit coulis, you can easily use a little heated jam as a fine substitute.

• Sage Potatoes Recipe
• Belgian Carrots Recipe
• Steak au Poivre Recipe
• Chocolate Torte Recipe

1) Zesty Tapenade Recipe

2) Bechamel Sauce Recipe

3) Roasted Cauliflower Soup Recipe