Holiday Charcuterie Board
HOLIDAY CHARCUTERIE BOARD
Charc boards. Everyone loves them. I’m no exception to this holiday mood. This year’s holidays may be tentative or flat out cancelled for most families, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a lovely stacked charcuterie board, with or without loved ones.
Where do you start?
A variety of choices is key. And not just of one thing. Multiple is key. Fruit, cheese and meats, y’all.
Pick a theme.
Since most boards are made during the holidays, I went with a white winter look. Most decorations you can find at craft stores, but at Heinen’s, they have decor right when you walk in! Gets me every time. Picking a theme will help you to start your bare bones of the board. I wanted to use a lazy Susan wheel tray, and used wood, to go with the winter woodsy look. I even used a large wooden cracked hazelnut/acorn for decoration inside the tray.
Plan your layout beforehand.
Design is key. If you have not enough items, or too much, it SHOWS. Not enough is the worst for me, because I don’t like empty spaces in a charc board. Depending on the size of your tray, board or slab of organically natural wood piece, you will need to estimate what space is being occupied by the food items. Since I know my board is circular and pretty wide but has a wall, I had to plan this methodically. If your board has no wall, you can have spillage and lay it out to where it still looks intentional, but full. Before I started filling the tray, I thought a bed of fresh crisp cranberries would provide a nice level bed for the charcuterie display. It also provides some height to the board and lifts the food.
Mix it up.
I chose fruit, cheese, chocolate and meat. You can do 1, 2, 3 or more than those listed. Just be smart about it. When I laid this out, I made sure I mixed up the sweet and savory, and put clusters of cheeses together, and some fruit and chocolate together. Also, some cheese by the crackers, and cheese by the meat. People love to pair 2 things together with a cracker or cheese. So always be thinking about what should be next to each other.
Have a dip, or two.
I don’t use too many dips, because it takes away from the main entertainment, the board options. So I usually go for one. This time I chose a nice subtle walnut butter spread. It’s just sweet enough to compliment all of the items on the board, and it isn’t too overpowering. Jellies wouldn’t be a bad idea either. Or a beer mustard. Just sayin’.
You can label your food items, by all means. People love a good label maker. PS, don’t you love these Honey & Roses Coffee Company gold spoons? They’re the cutest, and a platter favorite.
So what do I have specifically in my board?
It’s all for your own taste buds really. I love sweet and savory as I always say, so there are meats, cheeses, fruit and chocolates.
For the meats, I used salami and herb crusted turkey. Cheese is my main love, so I have here a Wisconsin cheddar, aged harvati, smoked gouda, a real funky blue cheese and cranberry white cheddar. For sweets, I have brioche waffles, peppermint chocolate bark and chocolate covered almonds. There are sesame wheat crackers and rosemary sea salt crack thins. Lastly, for the fruit, I have strawberries, blackberries, figs and dates. Don’t forget to sprinkle a nut assortment and have a dip or two!
