Mitica Drunken Goat Cheese In Red Wine
Most people enjoy a glass of wine with their charcuterie platter, so Mitica went ahead and infused red wine straight into their goat cheese! This semi-firm goat cheese from the Murcia region of Spain is cured for up to 72 hours in a traditional Spanish red wine. The result is a bright white cheese with a purple rind that has a beautiful, smooth fruit taste. Its a great way to offset any strong flavors on the board.
Selecting The Perfect Cheese For Your Charcuterie Plate:
Most cheeses fall into one of these four categories:
- For a fabulous cheese platter, try to include different flavors and textures by choosing one cheese from each category.
- Here are some of my favorites from each category:
- FIRM:Parmigiano-Reggiano, Manchego, Parmesan
*PRO ENTERTAINING TIP: If specialty or artisan cheese isnt in your budget, especially during the holidays, then ask your guests to contribute by bringing their favorite cheese. In my experience, folks get excited about picking out and bringing a favorite or new cheese. This will also help introduce you to different cheese varieties that you may not have tried before.
Collier’s Easy Mellow Cheddar
There are untold varieties of cheddar cheese, so it can be daunting to pick the right one. One surefire choice is Colliers Easy Mellow Cheddar aged for five or six months. As its name suggests, this Welsh cheddar offers a creamy, smooth texture as well as a well-rounded sense of sweetness and standout flavor. Its mildness makes it a highly versatile cheese that can please people of all tastes.
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Must Have Cheeses For A Cheese Board
- Pin
Need some help making that ultimate cheese board for the holidays? Use this handy cheese guide for the best cheese to use for a cheese board!
Theres nothing like an epic cheese board and some good drinks to welcome guests. I like to keep my appetizers simple and a cheese board comes together quickly with no baking required. With a mix of sweet and savory elements and a variety of textures coming together, cheese boards have a little something for everyone.
Time and again I come back to the same high-quality cheeses that make my cheese board a holiday favorite. Ive found that the perfect formula for the best cheese board calls for the five kinds of cheese Ive listed below plus a smattering of fresh fruit, roasted nuts, cured meats, spreadable, crackers, and sliced bread.
You can also add olives, cornichons, dried fruit and any other of your favorites to make your cheese board that much more amazing. Lets get the festivities started with quick and easy tips on the best cheeses for a cheese board!
Of The Best Homemade Charcuterie Board Ingredients
One of the things that I love about charcuterie boards is that they are just so easy. All of the ingredients can be store-bought, and that alone is a huge time-saver. But sometimes its nice, too, to add a homemade touch to your board. Thats why today Im sharing 42 of the best homemade charcuterie board ingredients that I could find on the internet.
If you missed my last post, 13 Charcuterie Board Ideas for Entertaining, check it out for already-put-together-for-you boards that you can recreate at home!
This post may contain affiliate links which means that if you make a purchase through one of these links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. See my Privacy Policy for more information.
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How To Make A Cured Meat And Cheese Platter
How To Prepare A Charcuterie Board
If making a small tray for 1-2 people, it will take up to 10 minutes to prep, depending on the number of items that you use. But if you are preparing a large charcuterie board with a wider variety of items like ours, itll take about you 30 minutes to prep everything and assemble on the board.
To make the process as simple as possible, do the following:
- Take The Cheeses Out of the Fridge: Before you start to prep any items, remove your cheeses from the fridge to warm up. They not only taste better when close to room temp, but some are also easier to slice, while others such as cream cheese get better to spread.
- Chop the Veggies: Wash and pat dry all the produce. Then either slice or chop the fruits and veggies into bite-size pieces.
- Slice the Meats and Cheeses: If your meat is in log form, for example, thinly slice it into rounds. If they are pre-sliced, pull them apart and then fan or roll them apart for easy spreading on the board. If your cheeses come in brick or ball form, either slice them or cut them into small cubes.
- Gather Other Items: Grab all the other items like jars or packages and leave in a place of easy access to assemble the board.
- Grab the board & utensils: Leave them near the items so you can spread all the ingredients on the board.
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What Kind Of Cheese Goes With Fruit
Cheese and fruit go hand in hand! Here are a few pairings I love.
- Strawberries and goat cheese, you can even add a balsamic reduction to drizzle over the two.
- Watermelon and feta are a great pair even adding a little mint to give it a little flare!
- Pear goes really well with brie as well as raspberries and cream cheese.
There are so many pairing options with cheese and fruit!
How To Create A Beautiful Fruit Charcuterie Board
Sharing how to make a fruit charcuterie board, which fruits to use, how to pair them with other cheeses, and so much more so you will wow your guests with the ultimate fruit board.
Fruit is one of my favorite snacks, they are perfect any time of the year. I love sitting on my patio any time of the day with a nice fresh plate or bowl of fruit! Fruit is great to serve in the morning with a cup of coffee, at brunch with your favorite mimosa, or in the evening with a glass of sweet tea or your favorite adult beverage. Ive not met too many people that do not like fruit, it is colorful and will add a pop to any plate or table! So whether you are hosting an event or just sharing with your own family, why not make an arrangement of your beautiful colorful fruit on a fresh fruit charcuterie board!
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Queserias Del Tietar Monte Enebro Cheese
Queserías del Tiétar surprised the cheese world in 2003 by winning the award for Top Goat Cheese in Spain. Monte Enebro Cheese has the creamy texture of a goat cheese and the impactful flavor of a blue cheese. Add this Spanish goat cheese to your next charcuterie board for greater dimension and depth of flavor. Accent it with raw honeycomb or some refreshing fruit.
Dont Forget The Fresh Organic Vegetables
When the season it right, home grown or quality organic vegetables are a great way to showcase the true taste of vegetables.
Supposedly the sugar content
As soon as vegetables are harvested, they also begin to lose moisture. Their cut stems also provide a perfect escape route for moisture, so vegetables wilt even faster once sliced. When plant tissues lose water, their nutrients, sugars, and plant acids become more concentrated in the remaining cell sap.
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Best Cheeses For Your Next Charcuterie Board
To make an epic charcuterie board, the best cheeses have to be selected. Its not just how delicious each cheese is individually, but how well they pair with the charcuterie meats to make the best flavor combinations. To help you assemble the most impressive offering possible, weve carefully selected 10 premier cheeses from around the world. We’ve also compiled 10 Fun Ways to Include Prosciutto on a Charcuterie Board.
The Best Types Of Bread Crackers And Spreads For Your Next Charcuterie Board
Bread and crackers and spreads, oh my. Bread and crackers and spreads, oh my! Do these three simple compliments to your charcuterie board have you in a panic?
Crackers and bread serve as the bitesize plates that fill a very, very important role–delivering the savory meat and cheese to your mouth. And dont forget the spreadables that add a magical moistness to your specially selected products.
But with seemingly endless options of crackers and spreads on grocery store shelves and loaves of fancy bread lining bakery sections, how do you begin to choose which options to include? Were here to help with some simple solutions such as baguettes, water crackers, fig spread, and honey.
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What Fruits Do You Put On A Charcuterie Board
Depending on the season or time of year you plan to create your fruit-only charcuterie board, is how I would choose the fruit to use. Some of the best fruits to choose from are watermelon, berries, grapes, and apples. Berries are easy to grab from a board, and there is quite a variety of berries to choose from. Watermelon is a great choice as a larger-sized fruit it will take up some room on your board but there are so many ways to cut and serve it. There are so many beautiful flavorful fruits to add to your board. I love to add tart green apples to my boards, and sweet grapes as a pop of flavor!
Faq Frequently Asked Questions About Charcuterie Boards:
How much cheese and charcuterie should I allot per person?
Plan on 2 ounces of each cheese and charcuterie per person when served as an appetizer.
What types of serving boards are best?
I like wood boards or marble boards best. Ive even bought big lacquered shelves from a hardware store to use as a background for a catering event where I needed to leave the board behind. It was sealed so it was food safe and cheap!
How far in advance can I assemble a cheese board?
If I am bringing a charcuterie board to an event or friends house then I often assemble it in advance on my serving board and wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and store it in the refrigerator. I will assemble and refrigerate them up to a day in advance.
Where should I buy my cheese?
While I love shopping small cheese shops like Murrays Cheese in New York, the cheese sections at grocery stores have significantly in recent years! Whole Foods always has a great selection as well as Trader Joess , Wegmans, Bristol Farms, Ralphs and ALDI.
How many cheeses should I add to a board?
For a visually appealing spread, I plate an odd number of cheeses, using either 3 or 5. Same goes for charcuterie.
What is the basic formula for a cheese board?
Cheese + Charcuterie + vehicle + fruit + nuts = a great easy charcuterie board!
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How To Make An Epic Smoked Salmon Charcuterie Board:
Start with a high quality smoked salmon.
Smoked salmon might not be the first thing that comes to mind when youre thinking about assembling a charcuterie board. Since most of them use pork-based products such as salami and prosciutto. However, the refreshing taste of cold-smoked salmon and the intense flavor of hot-smoked salmon can add an extra layer of depth to your charcuterie board. Salmon also pairs incredibly well with most accompaniments, such as crackers and cream cheese! It can make for the perfect combination you never knew you needed. But, trust us, you will soon realize what a wonderful thing you have been missing out on!
The most important thing when choosing a salmon for your charcuterie board is to choose a high-quality, super nutritious, flavorful, and of course sustainable salmon. We personally recommend Oshn Salmon which can be delivered directly to your door. You can learn how to cold smoke salmon HERE.
Choose the right board, dishes, & tools.
How you display your salmon charcuterie board can make all the difference. Choose a beautiful board or slate. Then choose matching dishes for your spreads, nuts, toasts, etc. Make sure to also choose spoons or knives that are smaller. We love forks for people to be able to easily fork their smoked salmon onto their own plate of toast.
Choose flavors that pair well together.
What Are The Best Cheeses For A Cheese Platter
The cheese on the platter is as important as the setup. Usually, your taste and budget make the decision for you but when you make a cheese platter for a party, you need to keep in mind that tastes can vary.
So youll need to have a bit of everything and what I mean is that you need to think about texture, the type of milk its made of and the aging process.
Youll need some mild, medium and strong cheese to create a perfect balance of flavors and keep everybody happy. Heres a classification based on different types of flavor:
Mild:
- Brie
- Cheddar this type ranges from mild to strong depending on how long it was aged
- Cottage Cheese
- Gorgonzola
- Gouda if its aged between 10 weeks and 8 months
I could speak for hours about cheese as this is one of my favorite ingredients. Actually, I love it so much that I am putting together an ebook just with cheese recipes.
But I cant wait to show you how to make a cheese platter for the holidays, so if you want to know more about the cheeses outlined above, you should read this article from Nutrition Advance. They speak about the nutritional content of each type, its origins and the aging process.
Now its time to move on and see which kind of charcuterie goes on a cheese platter.
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Other Charcuterie Cheese Board Tips And Tricks:
- Try to include both salty and sweet. Nothing is saltier than a variety of olives and pickled vegetables. To add a little sweet, I always like to add small amounts of chocolates around the board. We’re usually pairing a nice wine with our charcuterie and cheese, so the chocolate is always appreciated.
- Don’t limit yourself. Add any kind of finger food your guests would love. I find a good deviled egg recipe is always devoured first. Add some local honey or a small jar of homemade red wine caramel sauce to sweeten things up. Think you need more color? Sneak in different kinds of vegetables.
- Challenge yourself. Every time you make a meat and cheese board, make it different than the last time. Create a summer inspired board with seasonal produce. Create a holiday themed meat and cheese board for Easter, Halloween, or St. Patrick’s Day. Get creative!
I love to hear what other people do when making their own charcuterie boards. Please leave me a comment telling me your tips and tricks!
Old Amsterdam Goat Gouda Cheese Wedge
Every self-respecting charcuterie board needs gouda cheese. Our pick is Old Amsterdam Goat Gouda, a multi-award-winning cheese from the Netherlands. Its creamy texture with a slight crunch of crystals, its smooth and distinctive goat flavor, and hints of nuts and caramel have earned it a sterling reputation the world over. Old Amsterdam Goat Cheese has been awarded the Diamond Taste Award a whopping 10 times. It also earned a silver medal in the Aged Gouda category for the 2016 and 2018 World Championship Cheese Contest in Wisconsin. Rich and robust, it is excellent on its own, but also versatile enough for a number of excellent pairings.
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