Crank Brothers Egg Beaters were the first clipless pedals I tried, and Crank Brothers of various descriptions are still the only pedals I've used. They're very easy to get in and out of. Given that you don't care about weight, I think MTB shoes make sense because you can walk in them. I'm currently using Pearl Izumi All Road shoes with Crank Brothers cleats and a variety of CB pedals.

The very low end Crank Brothers pedals that you can get from Nashbar/Performance for under $35 aren't something I'd recommend. They are essentially disposable and after about 2000 miles they start squealing miserably. I like the Egg Beater 2 and Egg Beater 3 very much, but since you're only interested in good weather riding, the Egg Beater 1 is probably OK. For longer rides you might want to look at the Candy line to get more of a platform under your foot. Don't get Smarties.

Regardless of what pedals you get, you should resign yourself now to the fact that at least once you're going to come to a stop and fall over because you forgot to unclip. It's embarrasing, but usually harmless.