The flavors in the Spring Couscous Salad are bright and the contrasting textures are smooth and crunchy. It's the perfect side dish for a savory main course, like roasted fowl with root vegetables, or grilled chicken breasts. You can adapt the salad recipe to fit whatever fresh vegetables are in season. And now that we're coming into peach season, try the quesadillas as an appetizer at your next cookout. Spring Couscous Salad 1/2 cup cubed yellow squash (younger more tender gourds are best) 2 cups snap peas or snow peas (or a mix), stringed and cut in half if large 1 1/2 cups couscous 1/3 cup diced red onion 1/4 cup olive oil (or more to taste) 3 Tbsp. chopped fresh mint 1/3 cup chopped flatleaf parsley 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, or more to taste 2 small cloves garlic, finely minced Sea salt and freshly round pepper Bring 3 cups of water to a boil in a small saucepan. Briefly cook the squash in the water until it's tender yet firm, about 1 minute. Remove squash with a mesh strainer, rinse with cool water and set aside. Cook the peas in the same water about 1 minute, strain, rinse and set aside. Put the couscous in a heat-proof bowl and pour on 1 1/4 cups of the boiling water. Cover the bowl with foil and set aside for 5 minutes. Fluff the couscous with a fork to separate the grains. Mix together the remaining ingredients and toss with the vegetables and couscous. Serve at room temperature or chilled. If possible, make about 1 hour ahead so the flavors have time to meld. Adapted from a recipe by David Hirsch in 'Cooking from the Garden.' Peach and Brie Quesadillas with Lime-Honey Dipping Sauce Sauce: 2 Tbsp. honey 2 tsp. fresh lime juice 1/2 tsp. grated lime rind Quesadillas: 1 cup thinly sliced peeled firm (but ripe), about 2 large peaches 1/4 cup thinly sliced sweet purple onions or sweet 1015 onions (see note) 3 oz. Brie, thinly sliced (see note) 4 8-inch flour tortillas 1 Tbsp. fresh chopped chives 1 tsp. canola or grapeseed oil To prepare sauce, combine ingredients, stirring with a whisk; set aside. To prepare quesadillas, heat a large skillet (a seasoned cast iron works well here) over medium heat. Rub 1/2 teaspoon of the oil on the skillet. Lightly cook two tortillas on one side, then flip tortillas and spread 1/4 of cheese, 1/4 of peaches and 1/4 of onions on cooked side. Fold tortillas in half and cook briefly on each side until cheese is bubbly and tortillas are lightly browned. Remove from pan and keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining quesadillas. Cut each quesadilla into wedges, top with a few chives, and serve with sauce. Notes: The original recipe called for adding 1 teaspoon of brown sugar to the sliced peaches. I omitted the sugar because the fresh peaches I purchased at the market were plenty sweet. I used my favorite local brie from Brazos Valley Farm, which is too soft to slice, so I spooned it onto the tortillas. Also, Cooking Light's recipe didn't include purple onions; I added them because I had fresh sweet ones from the market and because I wanted a little more crunch and flavor. And finally, these quesadillas were so good, I didn't need the dipping sauce, but it's well worth making at least once; the acidic sweetness of the sauce is a nice foil to the creamy rich filling. -- Adapted from a recipe in Cooking Light's 'Cooking Through the Seasons: An Everyday Guide to Enjoying the Freshest Food.' Roasted Guinea Hen with Root Vegetables and Fennel Sauce Note: The amounts here are not critical; adapt and revise to suit your tastes Roasted Guinea Hen Fresh, pastured guinea hen 2-3 Tbsp. olive oil 1 tsp. soy sauce 2 or 3 fresh fennel stalks, cut in thirds, feathery fronds removed Sea salt and freshly ground pepper Roasted Root Vegetables: 1 cup carrots, scrubbed and cut into 1-2 inch chunks, or use baby carrots whole 1 cup new potatoes, with peeling on, scrubbed clean, halved if small, or cut into 1-2 inch chunks Olive oil Sea salt and freshly ground pepper 1 cup spring onions, peeled and left whole if small, quartered if large, green tops removed 3 cloves garlic, sliced Fennel Sauce Olive oil 2 small fennel bulbs, cleaned, cored, sliced; fronds and stalks removed 1/4 cup onion, sliced 1 clove garlic, sliced 1/4 cup dry white wine About 1/3 cup homemade guinea hen stock or good quality packaged stock or broth (see note) Sea salt 2 tsp freshly chopped thyme leaves 1 tsp. arrow root powder mixed into 3 tsps. water Heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine olive oil and soy sauce and drizzle on hen. Place fennel stalks inside hen. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 30 minutes on one side, remove from oven, turn the hen over and baste other side with drippings. Cook until skin is crisped and juices run clear when thigh is pierced at its thickest point, about 20 to 40 minutes more, depending on size of hen. Combine root vegetables, oil and seasonings, except for onions and garlic. (Pat vegetables dry with a cloth if they're wet so they don't steam.) Lay in a shallow roasting pan, in a single layer with a little breathing room between vegetables. Roast in 400-degree oven (after hen is done if using one oven) for about 10 minutes, or until carrots are not quite tender. Stir in onions and garlic, another drizzle of oil if vegetables seem dry and return to oven and cook until onion is lightly browned and carrots are tender, about 5 or 10 more minutes. While vegetables are roasting, make fennel sauce. Heat a large heavy bottom skillet (stainless steel works well here) over medium-high heat. Add a splash of olive oil, then add fennel and onion, and sautee for 2 or 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, add garlic and continue cooking for a few minutes more until fennel is tender and lightly caramelized. Add wine and stock and stir to loosen browned bits from bottom of pan. Season with salt, add thyme and stir in arrow root mixture. Continue cooking for a few more minutes until sauce thickens. Taste and adjust seasoning. To serve, place a couple of spoonfuls of fennel sauce on a plate and top with a piece of roasted hen and surround with roasted vegetables. Pass more sauce at the table. If desired, garnish with fennel fronds. Notes: The best stock for this dish is homemade, preferably from the roasted head, neck, wings and back of a guinea hen, but roasted chicken parts also will work. Place parts in a saucepan with two or three fennel stalks, cut in thirds. Add 1/4 cup of dry white wine, 1 chopped clove of garlic, 3 cups of water and salt. Simmer for at least two hours or longer, periodically skimming off any cloudy debris that rises to the top. Strain and store in the fridge for up to three days until ready to use. Will keep in the freezer for six months. -- Renee Studebaker Renee Studebaker writes for the Austin American-Statesman. E-mail: rstudebaker@statesman.com. 