Classic Christmas Charcuterie Board
Whenever I'm entertaining during the holiday season, my go-to appetizer is a always a festive charcuterie board. Not only is this super quick and easy to make, but it is a perfect shareable dish for feeding a crowd. There's hardly any prep involved aside from a little slicing and arranging. A giant wood bread board or platter is the perfect base for serving your charcuterie and creating a stunning display that looks just as good as it tastes. I loaded this one up with all of my favorite meats and cheeses, and also added in some fun holidays treat for a Christmas touch!
Find all the instructions and ingredients for putting this one together below!
Xoxo
Emily
-1 wheel of Brie cheese
-1 seasonal cheese (check cheese section for latest offerings- something with cranberry, fig, rosemary, would all work, or anything else you'd like to try!) I used a cranberry Wensleydale cheese.
-1 white cheese- provolone, havarti, mozzarella, blue cheese, white cheddar, soft white cheese or dip, etc. I used an Irish white cheddar cheese.
-spinach artichoke parmesan dip
-small package of pomegranate seeds
-1 package of salami of your choice
-1 package of prosciutto
-1 package ham of your choice
-strawberries
-raspberries
-1-2 green pears
-green grapes
-fig, cranberry, or beet crackers (find at Trader Joe's or Kroger cheese section)
-1 package water crackers or pita crackers (any plain crackers)
-1 small jar cornichons (mini pickles- can also do any pickles of your choice)
-2-3 seasonal desserts or candy of your choice (cookies, candy, cakes, etc.). I used mini gingerbread, candy canes, and holiday shortbread cookies.
-optional: any kind of seasonal cookie cutter (smaller size- needs to fit inside your brie wheel)
-optional: fresh cranberries and fresh rosemary for garnish
Start by placing your Brie in the centerfirst and making your special cutout! I used a holiday cookie cutter in the center of my brie, just pressing down about 1/4 to 1/2 of the way into the Brie. Carefully remove then scrape off the top rind of the brie just inside the cookie cutter design.
Fill the inside of that Brie cutout with the pomegranate seeds.
Next you will place your bowls. I placed these on each side of the brie leaving space in between and on opposite corners. In one bowl I placed the cornichons and in the other I placed the spinach artichoke parmesan dip! Don’t forget to add a spoon or fork for serving in these bowls.
Next I placed the two remaining cheeses, again on opposite sides of the Brie on opposite corners/sides from the bowls. I cut about half of the cheese into bite sized pieces and leave the other half with the rind on beside it.
Add your meats next. Watch how to make a salami rose here. You will want to spread these out and place on different areas of the board with plenty of space in between since they are similar colors.
Next begin filling in with your largest fruits first- pears and strawberries. I cut up about half the strawberries and left the rest whole, same with the pears. Fill in next with your smaller raspberries and grapes. Make sure to space any like colors/textures away from each other when placing these.
Add your fun seasonal items next, again spacing these out and keeping in mind color placement around the board.
Finally fill in with your crackers at the end. You can stack these on their side to fit a lot in a small area. You can also place extra crackers in a bowl beside the board if you run out of room for all your cracker/bread options.
Finish by garnishing the edges and any holes with rosemary, fresh herbs, and cranberries. Some nuts (spiced, sweet, or salted) would also be perfect to fill in small holes at the end during this step!
