Entree-free zone

YOU GATHER with family and friends in the evening as the heat of the day starts to fade and the first cool ocean breezes begin to blow in, thick and sweet as honey. The bright white light of afternoon gradually dims to twilight's shades of blue and gray. In the air hangs the summer garden smells of baked earth and herbs.

There's no better time to sit around the backyard to talk a lot and eat just a little.

Let's face it: Late-summer nights are perfect for entertaining but not so great for cooking or eating three-course meals. This kind of weather calls for a different battle plan for dinner. Rather than a full-frontal attack on hunger, it's better in summer's heat to overwhelm the enemy with lots of little bites. And if those dishes can be put together without heating up the kitchen or firing up the grill, so much the better.

If you can toast bread, chop tomatoes and slice some sausage, a small-bites feast is a breeze. Call it antipasti, mezzes or tapas or just plain old appetizers, this spread is the perfect way to eat throughout the evenings of September and early October. Plan a filling dish or two to serve as anchors -- such as a rice salad or a frittata -- then at the last minute assemble an assortment of accompaniments based primarily on staples you have on hand, such as spiced almonds, bruschetta, home-finished olives, stuffed peppers and dried sausages.

Do the real cooking in the cool of the morning, then the only thing you need to do before serving is let the food warm to room temperature.

The menu can be elaborate enough to rival a small tapas bar, or it can be as simple as sliced sausage, spiced almonds, cured olives and a room-temperature frittata.

To make a good assortment of small plates, just stock up on some high-quality pantry goods, grab some fresh and seasonal ingredients and master a few basic techniques that can be adapted in a mix-and-match way.

Can you make toast? Good, you're halfway to bruschetta or crostini (hint: when you're doing a bunch of toast, it's easier to bake the bread slices in a 400-degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes). The light but sturdy texture of sourdough works best, but whether it comes from slicing a long, thin baguette or cutting pieces of a round boule is up to you.

--

So many choices