Are you looking for an easy holiday meal this year? With all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it can be difficult to plan an extravagant meal that will have you in the kitchen for hours, unable to join in on the rest of the fun. However, you don’t want to cook something unimpressive, so what choice do you really have?
We may be biased, but we feel like charcuterie boards make the perfect holiday meal — especially a board that’s holiday-themed! It’s delicious, classy, and beautiful to look at, but the best part? It’s simple! You won’t have to spend your entire holiday cooking away in the kitchen this year. This week’s Board & Bread blog provides some helpful tips for how to create the perfect holiday-themed charcuterie board that will wow everyone this year!
Board & Bread offers a range of delicious charcuterie boards, both large and small. If you’re someone who enjoys a delicious meal for the holidays, but you’d rather have someone else do the work, that’s no problem. Read this week’s Board & Bread blog, and if you decide a DIY charcuterie board isn’t for you, reach out to us in Prosper to learn more about our event catering options!
Choose a Variety of Traditional, Cured Meats
In order to make the perfect charcuterie board, you’ll need to include a balance of traditional, naturally cured meats in the center. Meat offers a nice hint of salt, along with some satisfying fat and protein, which is a nice break from platters of cookies and sugary holiday drinks.
When creating your board, you should aim to use at least three different meats, including at least one cured, such as Italian salami, and one cured sausage.
Add the Cheese Next
After you’ve selected and sliced the meats you’re going to use, it’s to start thinking about the cheese. Hard cheeses tend to pair well with hard salami and soft cheeses pair well with soft meat, like prosciutto. Try to place them close together on the board, as these two things will likely be paired.
Pick Something Pickled
In addition to meats and cheeses, your charcuterie board is going to need some pickled elements to bring a bit of assortment to it. This can include things like olives, cornichons, or pickles. You could even get a bit more unique and include some pickled garlic!
Include a Jam or Mustard
You’re going to want to bring out the sharp, acid notes within your board, and a hint of jam or mustard will do the trick. You can spread these on pieces of toasted bread or top them with some of the meats you’ll have available on your board.
Make Sure You’ve Got Some Crunch
To keep things interesting, we recommend incorporating some foods with a bit of crunch. You’ll want to vary the texture from the soft and delicate meats found. Pickled foods can be a good option, but often aren’t quite crunchy enough, so we recommend a toasted break, such as sourdough, which acts as a substantial addition to your board if you’re looking to satiate hunger.
Another great idea is to include some toasted almonds, which are healthy, delicious, and provide the ideal amount of crunch, but are lighter than bread!
Add Some Sweetness and Some Freshness
Charcuterie boards include many savory foods, so it’s important to add a touch of sweetness to help balance it out. We recommend slicing some apples or pears and arranging them throughout the board. This way, you can incorporate a touch of sweetness to bring a pleasant finish to the board!
Create a Color Scheme
If you’re wanting to go all out and make your board truly holiday-themed, we recommend including some red and green throughout. Whether you want to do this using food elements or using ribbons or other additions is up to you.
Add Some Garnishings
Fresh garnishings are the perfect way to tie your charcuterie board together. Try including some fresh cranberries or rosemary garnish to keep things fresh and classy! These will be a cute addition to any charcuterie and will help ensure that the holiday theme is clear.
Choose Board & Bread for Your Event Catering
2020 has been hard enough already, so if cooking this holiday sounds like the last thing you want to do, our team here at Board & Bread has got you covered! We offer event catering, including beautiful and delicious charcuterie boards of all sizes.
Whether you’re feeding a small family of four or five or you’re hosting a larger event this year with a few more people, we’ve got a board for every occasion. Visit our boards page to get a better idea of the specifics and reach out to us in Prosper.
Happy Holidays! We look forward to hearing from you.