There are so many reasons to love a good cheese board. For one thing, they’re such a fun activity to put together, and on the other hand, they’re a crowd pleaser for almost any occasion. Just the other night, we put together a great little impromptu cheese board, completely out of the blue. It was Bachelorette Monday (and had already been such a nice day), so we just didn’t really feel like making a complicated dinner!
Thanks to my mom’s “fridge rule of thumb”, we already had exactly what we needed to whip something together last minute. She has ingrained into my mind that you should always have cheese in your refrigerator, no matter what. Making sure to have a simple selection tucked away will come in handy more often than you might think. You never know when the mood might strike for a casual dinner of cheese, crackers, and fruit!
So, this coming weekend, maybe give the cheese board idea a shot! They’re a great end-of-the-day treat for these hot summertime evenings, and could be the perfect excuse for inviting over your close friends for some charcuterie and a glass of wine (or a date night…hello!).
STARTING POINT
When it comes to putting together the cheese board, whether for an event or a last-minute night like ours, one look at Pinterest can leave you overwhelmed. What I’ve found, though, is that cheese boards can really be whatever you want! I like to hone in on the season, the materials I have to work with, and what kind of group I’m serving. Last night, for example, it was just my mom, my sister Emma, and I, so that meant we needed a mix of gluten-free and regular crackers, several cheese options, and plenty of fruit. My mom has a handful of super fun board options to choose from (this time I’m talking literally about the board you put the cheese on, haha), so I picked one that would be the perfect size for three people.
ARRANGEMENT
From there, it all comes down to the visuals. I like to mix textures, colors, shapes, and heights to really emphasize the spread. In the picture above, you can see how I added the tall crackers to a taller bowl, kept the raw honeycomb in the jar, and placed the spreadable cheese in a something smaller. This way, the board doesn’t seem so flat and uninteresting…there’s some curb appeal going on now! I also used toothpicks to secure the salami into different rolls and folds, which is helpful if you don’t have a wide array of meats to choose from.
The greens placed underneath the board are outcast pieces of eucalyptus that I stole from some of my mom’s leftover bunches. Adding color and texture, especially with non-edible elements, really makes the entire spread seem more like a piece of art than food (which is the goal in my eyes).
STARS OF THE SHOW
Now, onto the good stuff: what do we actually put onto our cheese boards? Well, aside from the other night when we just pulled whatever we had left, we like to mix cheeses based on the assumed palate of our audience. Personally, I’m a big fan of bolder cheeses, ones that have been aged or are a little funky, but I also know plenty of people who gravitate toward the milder options. It’s also good to note whether or not you’re making your board vegetarian, fruit-centric, veggie-centric, or strictly just cheese. For me, the time of year normally dictates what is included, but I always like to have a little fruit and a little meat on there with the cheese, just to add variety.
With that in mind, here are the usual suspects on our more “official”, “event-worthy” cheese boards (summer edition).
Cheese:
- Aged Gouda/Beemster
- Tillamook Sharp Cheddar
- Triple Cream Brie
- Toscano Cheese with Black Pepper (Trader Joes)
- Syrah-Soaked Creamy Toscano Cheese (Trader Joes)
Meat:
- Rosé salami
- Prosciutto
- Andouille sausage
Summer Fruit:
- Raspberries
- Blueberries
- Strawberries
And here are some accessories to complete your perfect cheese board scenario! We’re loving the etúhome White Round Mod Charcuterie Board and these Chalkboard Cheese Markers from Crate & Barrel.
3 Comments