The Perfect Cheese & Charcuterie Plate

Making a beautiful cheese plate is one of my greatest joys in life. The plate is your palette, and truly you can paint anything you dream. Here's the basic framework that I use to build a platter, and some tips on how to do it successfully...plus, a few ideas to inspire your creativity.

Quantities

Cheese & Charcuterie

- If you are serving your cheese and/or charcuterie board as an appetizer before a big dinner, I recommend about 2 oz. of cheese & charcuterie per person. If your platter is for a party, and you are serving other appetizers, you can bump it up slightly to 3 oz. per person

- Choose 3-5 varieties of cheeses

Crackers

Dips

The Formula

Texture + Colors + Flavors = A Winner Cheese Plate

Cheese

Charcuterie

Dips/Spreads

Vegetables and/or fruits

Garnish

Tips

Cheese plates can get very messy, very fast. It drives me nuts. In an effort to make things look pretty for the longest possible time, I highly suggest pre-cutting all of your cheeses. You can do this ahead of time (even the day before). For a larger party, I tend to lean towards firm to semi-firm cheeses. They hold up way better, and don't get as messy. For smaller gatherings - especially when your cheese plate is being served before a big meal, softer cheeses work fine. If possible, I still break them up a bit for ease. Brie for instance, can be cut just before serving. Goat cheeses and blue cheeses can be crumbled.

Serving utensils

Vegetables: I'm a person that could eat raw vegetables all day long, but not everyone does. I highly suggest taking the time to do a quick blanch or roast your vegetables.

When designing your cheese palette, think about what else will be served. If you are doing a meat heavy dinner for instance, I would not do a big, meat heavy board. Same for cheese.....if you are serving a cheese centric dinner, stick to something light and fresher. If you are serving an Italian dinner, go classic and consider an antipasti platter. I find that mixed grill dinners have more flexibility in flavors and textures.

Ideas

Seafood Cheese Plate: Tinned Fish (i.e Sardines), Shells, Smoked Trout, Mustard

Spanish Inspired:

Antipasti: Marinated Grilled Artichokes, Roasted Red Peppers, Pickled Green Beans, Olives or Olive Tapenade, Pepperoncini, Marinated Beans, Bruschetta

Curried: Roasted Cauliflower, Curried Dip

Seasonal Inspired Boards:

Summer Garden: Chimichurri, Pesto, Cherry Tomatoes, Basil,

Spring: Edible Flowers, Peas, Cucumbers, Fennel, Dips, Honeycomb

Autumn: Roasted Delicata Squash, Walnuts,

Winter: Rosemary, Bleu Cheese, Charcuterie

The easiest dips!

Sour Creme, Lemon Zest, Chopped Herbs (Parsley, Chives, Etc), Cracked Pepper, Finishing Salt

Products I Love

Bitchin' Sauce

Walnut Mustard

GF Crackers: Mary's, Etc.