Make everything from scratch, and make sure you can do it successfully before trying it live if you want to show off.

It’s not very flashy, but I make green bean casserole from scratch every thanksgiving. Instead of buying canned beans and cream of mushroom, get green beans from produce and prep them, make a roux, chop some fresh mushrooms and make your own sauce. I do buy fries onion rather than make my own, but that’s an option. All of that is extremely easy to do, looks impressive to people who don’t know how to cook, and tastes better.

For lasagna, make the sauce instead of buying it.

A buffalo chicken salad can be good an option, but you probably need to make the chicken yourself rather than just throwing precooked buff chicken on some kale.

If you can make a dessert in advance that will add to your cause. If you have a spring form pan, NY style cheesecake is very easy to make and provides the option for people to choose their own toppings.

Soups are a good choice. Most require some level of prep like making a mirepoix and can be made as a side dish. Most are prep and then wait, so the soup can cook while you’re doing other cooking.

Salmon in a cast iron or stainless is easy and looks impressive. Start skin side down, butter baste, and finish by sticking the whole pan in the over. Just don’t over do it.

Just make sure everything is cooked all of the way through and nothing is burnt. Whatever you decide, I say find a recipe, or something similar to what you have planned online, and get a good feel for time and temp, because those will ruin anything you’ve done prior if you get it wrong.