I jokingly say I have a love/hate relationship with charcuterie boards because I have made so, so many of them over the years. My organic meal delivery service and grab & go shop offered custom grazing board offerings any time of year. I made them often, changed my ingredients based on seasonality, and really developed a streamlined process to build them efficiently and set myself apart. behold, my top charcuterie board tips…
1. create a process
creating your own personalized process when building charcuterie boards can lead to efficiency and creating a signature look.
begin my organizing the order in which you prep items. cubing our slicing your cheeses the evening before or making a spiced nut blend 48 hours before will streamline the process. Save delicate items like washing berries or grapes until the day of. When you have prepped all items, create a clear and clean work station to begin building.
my next process was the order in which I would build the boards. I always began by arranging small bowls or mason jars along with my larger items first. Larger items included grape bundles and piles of cubed cheeses. I then added the remaining cheeses such as brie topped with honeycomb, Boursin and aged manchego.
next, I added small piles of our honey rosemary spiced nuts, followed by groupings of folded charcuterie. finally, I finished with smaller fruits, berries and floral or herb adornments. Finally, my signature was a sprinkling of dried lavender atop the honeycomb. The lavender honeycomb made it on every single board.
2. group items- don't scatter them.
This second tip builds off of my first. In the picture above, I’ve created a smoked salmon board. Notice I keep the salmon in its own grouping, as well as the greens, vine tomatoes and grilled lemons. If I scattered the salmon all across the tray, it would might perhaps have resembled a, “dog’s breakfast”, in the words of the fabulous ina garten. She says this because our eyes can’t rest and appreciate a single component if it’s spread all across the place. Grouping similar components create organization and added interest.
3. add dimension
when serving your charcuterie board, add some dimension and height to your entertainment area. a raised platter can act as a pedestal with crackers tucked beneath or a decorative silver plated platter can add elegance. also, make sure to utilize decorative crystal bowls for items like marinated mozzarella, olives or hummus. Additionally, decorative bowls to hold fancy toothpicks or unique servingware added to the mix will bring your board to the next level.
4. set yourself apart
the world is full of charcuterie board makers and to set yourself apart, you need to find a signature look that is unique to you. I created my signature early with my dried lavender- topped honeycomb. honeycomb was always a staple on my mom’s cheese boards at our yearly Christmas Eve party and it’s nostalgic to me.
I also took extra care to use seasonal produce and/or florals on my boards. this fun late summer charcuterie board, (shown above), had darling mini watermelons, fresh rainier cherries and mini orchids to amplify the summer season’s bounty.
finally, another important part of my niche are fresh flowers that are organic, edible and unlike others sold at local grocers. this is a pricier addition, but it truly amplifies the boards. you can work with a local microgreen farm to see if they grow edible flowers or check online to find edible flower purveyors to ship in insulated boxes with ice.
whatever you decide to do, make sure it’s something you love and it’s something that represents you. This could be as simple as always including your favorite fruit or including your famous spiced nuts. Happy charcuterie board building! xoxo.
