It depends on if I like the guest or secretly wish they were dead. if it’s the former I order takeout. if it’s the latter… I cook.

now baking on the other hand… I always bake from scratch. and never give my cookies to people I hate.

Elk Osso Buco - Beyond The Chicken Coop https://www.beyondthechickencoop.com/elk-osso-buco/

It depends on who is coming over, I more usually impress with cocktails & make food to satisfy people not impress them. Gumbo, I have had people say best they ever tasted. Lamb for my mother-in-law, slow cooked 4 hours in the oven with fennel and apricots and harissa. Sourdough baguette one year at Thanksgiving, those were chowed down on. Vegan kid is impressed when I nail a dessert for her. I do grow some of what we eat, feel like that is sort of impressive I guess.

But cocktails is where I get the most compliments - I made the

https://imbibemagazine.com/recipe/friend-zone-a-zero-proof-strawberry-drink/

With some really nice spiced strawberry fermented soda I made, with the goop from the strawberry syrup like she uses in the recipe, but also the tops and leaves. It doesn’t even have alcohol, my heavy drinking ex brother outlaw could not understand how it could be so good. “What’s in this?” “Tepache de fresa” “No, I mean what is the booze?” “None.” “See, THAT is why you are the best. How is this so good?”

You have to know your audience to have it be well received. There’s no one dish that is going to universally be magic.

If you are cooking for me, gumbo or a soup with an amazing broth. Or a really good sandwich. I love a good sandwich.

According to my husband, anything with garlic, onion, and sautéed those both in butter smells very fancy.

If I had time to plan though, I’d make ravioli and freeze them and make sauce when they came over.

Chicken Parmas with chips, veg and gravy

Really hits the spot 8 beers in

When I have guests I’m usually not trying to impress them but feed them so I go for something like a large ziti with summer squash and sweet onion for the side and some fresh made bread with olive oil for dipping.

Not meats and ferments

Himalayans. Lot of work to get them, but worth it, because the ice keeps them fresh, and other types of meat are expensive.

The most fancy dish I can make is a vegan “goulash” served with potato dumplings and red cabbage.

The most effort goes into the potato dumplings, because the best quality requires mixing packaged potato dough with shredded potatoes, that had their water squeezed out. On non-Christmas occasions we just have cooked potatoes or knedlíky.

Usually something super complicated that has caught my fancy but I have never tried before. Lol.

Still more hits than misses. Most people can’t cook these days and I’m pretty comfortable in the kitchen. I can pump out delicious food with basically whatever. But for an occasion I’ll put in the couple days to really do something up.

I don’t cook, but I bake. Banana bread, brownies, Cinnamon coffeecake, Cornbread, etc.

A pie (or tart), or a dirty beans.

Pie made with ready made pie crust. Throw in some bell pepper, ham slices, zucchini, chili, garlic (or basically whatever seems like would taste good together). Mix cream cheese and an egg, pour over the fillings, top with some pizza cheese. Once cooked, sprinkle with some herb that fits the filling or spring onion.

Dirty beans is lightly cooking a bit of onion, chili, garlic, whatever beans (in water) I happen to have, tomato sauce, ton of cumin, some other spices that seem like a good idea, topped with some sour-ish, runny cheese or feta. To make it go from basic to fancy, I use Crème fraîche instead of cheese and fresh cilantro.

Appreciate everyone who actually gave the recipe!!

Shakshuka, Japanese curry, misir wot (ethiopian spicy red lentils). to name a few

i buy milk, flour and vitamins and boil them down to little energy balls

Most anything, home made, not from a box or frozen, just do a good job. People are not used to well prepared home cooked food.

However, these always work well:

Sous vide salmon, pan seared, with asparagus and hollandaise. If you can’t sous vide, a good pan sear is still amazing.

Beef Bourguignon.

Shrimp Étouffée, rice, and corn bread.

Pan seared, oven finished steak or loin of some sort. Pork loin works well. Home made skin-on mashed potato and pan roasted bacon parmesan brussels sprouts.

All of these are relatively easy to make, and if done well, go over fantastic.

Want to really wow them? Bake a cheesecake for dessert, especially with a fruit topping.