THE JOYFUL LIFE
  • Home
  • Shop
  • Blog
    • HEART
      • Faith
      • Bible Study & Theology
      • Marriage
      • Motherhood
        • Motherhood (ALL)
        • Parenting Toddlers to Tweens
        • Parenting Teens
        • Parenting Adult Children
        • Raising Boys
        • Raising Girls
      • Divorce | Single Motherhood | Blended Families
      • Adoption & Foster Care
      • Infertility & Miscarriage
      • Friendship & Community
    • HOME
      • DIY Projects
      • Family & Home Management
      • Fun for Kids
      • Homemaking
      • Homeschool
      • Hospitality
      • Recipes
    • LIFE ISSUES
      • Anxiety
      • Difficult Family Dynamics
      • Emotions
      • Health
      • Identity & Purpose
      • Loss | Suffering | Grief
      • Work & Life Balance
    • REVIEWS
      • App Reviews
      • Book Reviews
      • Product Reviews
    • FEATURED INTERVIEWS
    • SEASONAL & HOLIDAY
  • Daily Devotions
  • About
    • Meet the Team
      • Management & Staff
      • Editorial Team
      • Blog Contributors
      • Devotion Writers
      • Photographers
    • Statement of Faith
  • Work with Us
    • Write for Us
    • Advertise
    • Employment
  • Contact
  • account
The Joyful Life News
Sign up to receive Joyful Life Community news, weekly blog post updates, shop announcements, and more.
A QUARTERLY COLLECTIBLE | Heart & Home Inspiration
THE JOYFUL LIFE
  • Home
  • Shop
  • Blog
    • HEART
      • Faith
      • Bible Study & Theology
      • Marriage
      • Motherhood
        • Motherhood (ALL)
        • Parenting Toddlers to Tweens
        • Parenting Teens
        • Parenting Adult Children
        • Raising Boys
        • Raising Girls
      • Divorce | Single Motherhood | Blended Families
      • Adoption & Foster Care
      • Infertility & Miscarriage
      • Friendship & Community
    • HOME
      • DIY Projects
      • Family & Home Management
      • Fun for Kids
      • Homemaking
      • Homeschool
      • Hospitality
      • Recipes
    • LIFE ISSUES
      • Anxiety
      • Difficult Family Dynamics
      • Emotions
      • Health
      • Identity & Purpose
      • Loss | Suffering | Grief
      • Work & Life Balance
    • REVIEWS
      • App Reviews
      • Book Reviews
      • Product Reviews
    • FEATURED INTERVIEWS
    • SEASONAL & HOLIDAY
  • Daily Devotions
  • About
    • Meet the Team
      • Management & Staff
      • Editorial Team
      • Blog Contributors
      • Devotion Writers
      • Photographers
    • Statement of Faith
  • Work with Us
    • Write for Us
    • Advertise
    • Employment
  • Contact
  • account
0

Tips and Tricks for Crafting the Ultimate Charcuterie Board

  • The Joyful Life Magazine
  • December 15, 2021
diy charcuterie board
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Print
diy charcuterie board

Char·cu·ter·ie /shar-ku-tuh-ree/ noun. The pantry cleanser, the crowd pleaser, the simplest most delicious meal replacement, and the essence of artful (and easy!) entertaining. A charcuterie board is not just something you eat—it’s a beautiful and delectable experience. No need to turn on the oven for this course, just gather, arrange, and enjoy! This no-stress spread of meats, cheeses, and delicious extras comes together as a gorgeous party pleaser that can be as simple or extravagantly artistic as you’d like. It’s all about variety, which pleases both eye and palate and helps provide endless pairing options. Grab your board and, with these helpful charcuterie board ideas, you can create a mouthwatering centerpiece for your next gathering!

Make it Standard, Surprising, and Special

A great charcuterie can look like a million bucks but doesn’t have to bankrupt your weekly food budget. It’s a flexible art form in which you can incorporate anything you have on hand or what happens to be on sale. Use the three S’s as your guide and plan to incorporate the standard, the surprising, and the special. Consider filling 50-75% of your board with standard, inexpensive ingredients. Use the remaining portion to fill with one or two extra special or rare items that will wow your guests. Then, be sure to include a few surprising elements. Here are some ingredient ideas to help inspire your perfect board.

Charcuterie board ideas

MEATS | Sliced smoky or pepper meats, summer sausage, salami, prosciutto, ham, sweet sopressata, chorizo, and pepperoni are some of the most popular options for this hearty headliner. Slice meats thin and plan for approximately 2 oz. per person.

CHEESES | A wide range is key—mild, medium, soft, aged, sharp, hard, pungent, and spicy. Cut into triangles, cubes, sticks, or slices or leave whole with a spreading knife. Popular cheeses include: gorgonzola, aged cheddar, goat cheese, manchego, Brie, Gruyère, Camembert, blue cheese, Parmesan, or balled fresh mozzarella.

BREADS | Baguettes, grilled buttered crostinis, pretzels, and a variety of crackers pair nicely and provide stability to bites of meat and cheese without detracting from the flavor. Arrange them in stacks or flared, or curl them around a whole soft cheese.

FRUITS | While meat and cheese are the true stars of the show, it’s nice to compliment them with the color and sweetness of in-season fruit. Include fruits such as grapes, berries, oranges, peaches, or cherries, as well as dried fruit like mangos, cranberries, or apricots. Avoid fresh fruit that will turn brown quickly like bananas or apples, unless pre-soaked in citrus juice.

Add unexpected extras—olives, sweet pickles, halved pomegranate, shell-on pistachios, dark chocolate, hummus, bacon, beet chips, halved hard-boiled eggs, dates, sliced pear, roasted nuts, or raw honeycomb.

A charcuterie board is not just something you eat—it’s a beautiful and delectable experience.

The Joyful Life Tweet

CREATE A BALANCED EXPERIENCE

A charcuterie board is the centerpiece of a gathering—more than just sustenance, but an experience! With a little extra thought, it’s easy to create a fun, delicious, and interesting experience. Only leave whole the cheeses that are easily separated with a knife and remove the casing from cured meats—because as beautiful as we love our boards to be, we want our guests to be able to enjoy the feast which means having things ready to serve. That said, balance the experience in order to leave room for creativity.

Leave room for Creativity

Keep grapes in a bunch and let guests pluck them off, and arrange flavors at random, allowing the ingenuity of each individual palate to lead the way. Include some things pre-sliced and others that guests can slice on their own, something spreadable, and something towering. Provide extra-long toothpicks or mini-skewers for building assorted pairings.

When selecting each ingredient, keep in mind the board as a whole, paying close attention to texture, color, size, shape, spice, and temperature. Varying these elements engages and pleases the senses. Don’t shy away from variety; include foods that are briny, sweet, salty, savory, tangy, warm, and crisp.

Whole grain mustards, spreads, jams and fruit preserves, honey, and nut butters add a pop of color and intrigue of flavor, while creating extra visual appeal.

Presentation is Everything

The food in itself is quite simple: meats, cheeses, fruits, and crackers. But thoughtfully vary the way you display each of the items and watch a board of ordinary snacks transform into a masterpiece! For example, stack, roll, fold, twist, or pile up meats and cheeses. Hollow out an orange or pineapple for a bowl to hold fruits, spreads, or cubed cheeses. Slice half of the summer sausage roll, and leave the rest whole. Cut up some cheeses, while leaving others in large chunks with a cheese knife. Jarred spreads or ramekins give the platter another dimension. It’s a good idea to start with these—strategically placed—and work randomly around from there, mixing and matching arrangements.

Fill bare spots and garnish with organics. The visual look of a tightly-packed board is much more appealing than spread out ingredients. Consider filling those open areas with decorative items your guests could eat if they’d like, or organics that draw on the rustic charm. Sprigs of rosemary or thyme, single stem flowers or just the plucked blooms themselves, whole radishes or pearl onions, candied orange slices, flower petals, baby’s breath, handfuls of arugula, tri-colored peppercorns, or sliced figs are all great filler ideas.

Bon Appétit!

Don’t forget the finishing touches! Drizzle hard meats with a touch of olive oil and top milder items with a sprinkle of Himalayan or flaky salt. Complete the spread with lit taper candles arranged behind your board, all atop a linen runner, and prepare to be applauded!

 

We hope these charcuterie board ideas inspire you to create a beautiful spread for your next event! What are your favorite tips for crafting the perfect charcuterie board?

This article originally appeared in
THE AWAKEN ISSUE
of The Joyful Life Magazine

AWAKEN | The Joyful Life Magazine | Spring 2020 | Issue 06
ORDER THE AWAKEN ISSUE

Share This Post

28
0
6
0
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Print
The Joyful Life Magazine

Heart & Home Inspiration for Christian Women.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

TRENDING POSTS
  • Dwell bible app 1
    Why You Need This App! The Amazing Dwell Audio Bible Now Has a Kids’ Version!
  • benefits of memorizing scripture 2
    Benefits of Memorizing Scripture and 5 Easy Methods to Help You Get Started
  • childrens book about family 3
    Leapin’ Leopards Book Review: New Childrens Book About Family Adventure!
VISIT OUR SHOP
  • The Power of Quiet Bible Study Guide | by Aimee Walker | The Joyful Life POWER OF QUIET | Digital Bible Study
    Rated 5.00 out of 5
    $12.00
  • Issue 13 | ADORE — Digital Version $14.00
  • Issue 14 | SIMPLIFY — Digital Version $14.00
Follow Us on Instagram
The Joyful Life News
Sign up to receive Joyful Life Community news, weekly blog post updates, shop announcements, and exclusive offers for our subscribers.

AMAZON AFFILIATE PROGRAM DISCLAIMER | The Joyful Life is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon offers a small commission on products sold through their affiliate links. Every purchase you make through our Amazon affiliate links supports our ministry at no additional cost to you.

  • BLOG
  • SHOP
  • WRITE FOR US
  • EMPLOYMENT
  • ADVERTISE
  • Terms
  • ACCOUNT
  • Contact
© 2022 The Joyful Life Co., LLC
Site Design by Maize Agency

Input your search keywords and press Enter.