With warm weather upon us, it's time to dust off the grill and patio furniture and get ready for backyard parties and barbecues. When it comes to entertaining outdoors, easy yet flavorful dishes that spotlight the season's bountiful harvest can keep prep time to a minimum. Plus, they're sure to please guests' palates.

"The arrival of summer means a sudden availability of all sorts of fresh vegetables - from familiar zucchini and eggplant to more exotic mushrooms and chilies," says Rick Bayless, award-winning chef, cookbook author and host of the PBS show "Mexico: One Plate at a Time." "Entertaining a summer crowd can be easy, delic ious and inexpensive if you let the season's produce do most of the work."

Chef Bayless offers two simple recipes that highlight fresh summer fare. His grilled chicken skewers feature bite-size marinated chicken chunks paired with succulent pieces of mango and pineapple. Providing a unique summer spin on a popular pot luck dish, his shrimp and pasta salad show- cases a medley of summer colors and flavors from corn, jícama, avocado, tomatoes and poblano chilies.

Bayless