First off, if you can pronounce the word “charcuterie” then your already ahead of the game. The definition of this hard to spell//hard to pronounce French word is: “the branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products, such as bacon, ham, sausage, terrines, galantines, ballotines, pâtés, and confit, primarily from pork.” Charcuterie boards are great for any occasion, but they are especially great for dinner parties, bridal showers, birthday dinners, football games and wineries.
The main ingredient for a charcuterie board is meat and cheese. You can also add nuts, hummus, crackers, olives, fruit and more. The key to making the board look extra scrumptious is by filling it all up in an organized way. I usually start with the bigger items, such as bowls filled with nuts, olives, hummus and the blocks of cheese. I place the cheese on different parts of the board and put the bowls towards the center. Then I move onto crackers. With the crackers, you can make fun designs and swirls. Stack them, lay them on top of each other, place them around the bowls, etc. After that, I move onto meat and sliced cheese. You can roll the meat or fold the meat. I try to do some of both! You’ll notice that by this step, the board is filling up so you have to be a bit more strategic with these items. Then comes the “fillers.” These are your grapes, nuts, seeds, etc. They can be placed on the bare spots of the board. Last is the decor. These can be leaves, flower petals, etc. Place a few pieces throughout the entire board, and Voilà!
Here are the ingredients for my most recent charcuterie board:
Ingredients:
Goat Cheese (honey flavored)
White Cheddar Cheese Block
Asiago Cheese Block
Pepper Jack Cheese
Mild Cheddar Cheese
Thinly sliced turkey
Salami
Olives
Hummus
Grapes
Variety of Crackers
*I purchased most of my cheese from Aldi, which has an incredible selection of unique cheeses.
Directions:
Place the wedge cheese on different sides of the board
Slice the blocks of cheese and spread it out on the board
Grab two small bowls and fill them with the olives and hummus. Place each bowl towards the center of the board
Fold the turkey into triangles and place on the board
Roll the salami and place on the board
Add little garnishes such as flowers, nuts, leaves, etc
Enjoy!