Roast chicken is perfect, so long as you (1) prep the evening before and (2) have an hour or two before guests arrive to put it in the oven and let it roast. You can even roast vegetables along with it. Roast beef works well too (just as long as you brown it before putting it in the oven). You can even use the same stovetop-to-oven dish. And a rice pilaf is also usually low stress (add in some raisins/pistachios/lemon... lots of other things work well too). Finally, freshly made tube pasta (like penne) works well with a sauce that can be made the evening before.

Salad + lasagna is really easy (boil the noodles and assemble the pan the night before and heat it the day of the party) or I like all of the slow cooker votes too. I make the easiest meatloaf in the slow cooker...2 pds of meat, mushrooms, ketchup, chili spice, egg, pepper...wrap in foil...cook on high for 3-6 hours or low for 6-8...no fuss --no mess...no dirty dishes.

definitely get a slow cooker.
And what's wrong with pizza? You can get a bunch of pitas/flatbreads, or a ball of dough, and some basic toppings. everyone tops their own and into the oven they go. A nice red on the side, maybe a green salad, and everyone's happy.
needless to say I am not a big fan of the whole "get out the good china, muffy, we're having dinner guests" idea. we are not friends with those people

I copied this from a friend: flank steak. You can buy it at Costco and it is relatively inexpensive there. Marinate it and then grill (you can use a salad dressing or other bottled marinade. Very easy dish.

OP here - don't mind takeout but sometimes don't love how it looks (fancy pizza can be nice) but chinese? am considering buying a slow cooker anyways so perhaps taht is the way to go. My current chili recipe is fabulous but takes so much time between chopping, cooking chicken etc.

Our friends always order takeout when we come over - I say if you can't beat 'em, join 'em!

There are a ton of slow cooker recipes that take about 10 minutes of prep time and make a bunch of food. Pick a more "mexican" themed one, then throw together some guacamole which is so easy to make, and bam, you have a nice meal.

Tacos are also a good idea from the PP - brown some meat, grab the fixins' and you are done. Make a salad and have some black beans in case someone is vegetarian.

- Pot of chili & cornbread with cheese, avocado, other fixings.
- Throw some drumsticks in a marinade the night before. Grill & serve with salad or veggies & dip and bread or pasta salad.
- Make your own tacos (all you need to do is cook some meat, beans, and or chicken and set out with lettuce, salsa, cheese, sour cream, avocado, etc)

Pick up pans of food from a fav spot, ours is Mama Lucia.

I used to enjoy cooking and even watched the food network but these days I don't have time or the inclination to cook and am often hesitant to have friends over (with kids) because of the work and/or embarrassment of ordering and/or making pizza. All of my go to entertaining recipes take way too much time and effort. Any suggestions for easy, fast entertaining meals so that we can finally invite people over without stress? thanks