Basic to Bad Ass Charcuterie Board

One of the fastest growing party food trends that I wholeheartedly support is
The Charcuterie Board 
There are endless variations of what can represent a charcuterie board. I have even put together a breakfast board which included hard-boiled eggs, pancakes, bananas, and other breakfast accoutrement.

Perhaps it’s because I am a product of the "Lunchables" generation, but charcuterie boards are my "jam" and are always my go-to for any gathering - large or small.

Key components of a charcuterie board:
Meat
Cheese
Fruit
Crackers

Additional items that can be added:
Chocolate
Nuts
Jams
Spreads
Dips
Honey
Cookies
Olives
Pickles
Vegetables
Breads
Really, just about anything! 

In this post I will show you basic boards I have thrown together for small gatherings as well as a massive charcuterie feasting board that I made for my best friend’s baby shower.

Before we begin, many people like to know where I got my serving platters and trays. Nearly all of mine came from Pier 1. You can also find them on Amazon for a decent price. 

First, let's start with a small, basic board.

This board has one softer cheese (Havarti, ooo na na), a basic sharp cheddar cheese, as well as two firmer, bolder flavored cheeses - a coffee rubbed cheddar and a pepper jack.
The kids were snacking on this tray too so I added some fun butterfly shaped crackers which they loved! There are a few very nutty crackers on this plate which is a personal favorite for me.
​*Important to note that you may want to keep the kids away from any spicy cheeses! 
Salami and pepperoni were the meat choices I had on hand for this plate and are usually a big hit with kids and adults alike. Green and black olives, blackberries, and grapes finished off the board to give it a nice sweet and salty component. 


*Cracker Tip*
I always find the most unique cracker choices at unusual stores like Marshalls and TJ Maxx. When I am out and see something unique or interesting, I always grab it and save it for another day. Other great options can be found at Publix and Aldi. 


This second board was for a gathering of five adults and two children. 

Everything on this tray was gone by the end of the party, mainly because someone could not walk away. It was me... I was "someone". 

The board contained all of the usual suspects, but also had more interesting elements:
Black pepper salami
Cherry tomatoes
Mini mozzarella balls
Apple slices
Strawberries
Sweet peppers
Firmer mozzarella wrapped in pepperoni (store bought)
It also had regular ol' turkey lunch meat that I rolled up to make it look nicer. 
All finished off with a yummy spinach dip (store bought) and baguette slices. 


I love, love LOVE putting together themed boards for the holidays. Below are two examples of holiday trays I made for Valentine's Day and Halloween. 
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The Valentine's Day board had heart shaped cranberry white cheddar cheese, salami rolled up like roses, chocolate covered blueberries and cookies, as well as the usual meats, cheeses, and other accoutrement. For various projects with the kids, I have several small cookie cutters on hand. One of those happens to be heart shaped which I used to form the cheddar cheese bites. 

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The Halloween board was made for an AMAZING party (which I will blog about soon under my "party" category) which was shaped to look like a jack-o-lantern using black and orange elements to make the face. 


Finally we come to the most EPIC charcuterie board I have ever created. I feel like Tom Hanks in Castaway when he finally made fire. 

I dubbed this "The Feasting Board" because it was exactly that, A FEAST.
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For my best friend’s baby shower, I put together this beast of a feast which fed 40 people easily. Goodie bags were handed out at the end of the party for people to make a “To-Go” bag for themselves as well. 


All of these ingredients were found at Walmart, Publix, and Aldi, but the key is to find unusual statement food items. I shopped at three different stores after pricing out various items at each location. As a general rule, I try to be a cheap ass while making things look fancy.
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First I lined the table with brown butchers paper so I could lay everything out right on top. It made for a very cool, rustic look. In the photos you will see a long wooden tray that I used to create a second layer adding more height to the table. I propped it up with two cheap baskets I found at Goodwill (which were cleaned before placing them near food). 
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Leafy greens were used to give an earthy appearance and to help fill in the gaps. 
I also put a bunch of fake (cleaned!) greenery underneath the long board so it wouldn't look empty underneath and people would not have to maneuver around to try to get food out from beneath it. 

My ol’ reliable wooden trays came out and were used for more height elements and to help separate out star components like the Brie and other fancy cheeses and meats. 

The crunchy breadsticks were placed vertically in mason jars to give more of a visually appealing look. 
With a board this size, it is important to have different heights and angles to make the board look larger and also to give you more room to lay out the foods.
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Here is the full list of every food item on this board:
Cucumber slices
Cherry tomatoes 
Sweet peppers
Green olives
Pickles
Black olives 
Italian pickled vegetables
Banana chips
Cashews
Almonds
Green grapes
Purple grapes 
Strawberries 
Blueberries
Blackberries
Dried cranberries
Garlic Baguette slices 
Crunchy breadsticks in rosemary and sesame flavors
Small and large pretzels 
MANY different types of crackers (at least 9 that I can remember)
Whisps (which is a regular everyday snack for me!) 
Cookies
Chocolate covered almonds
Salami
Pepperoni
Prosciutto 
Pepperoni and prosciutto wrapped mozzarella sticks 
Kraft block cheeses I cut into cubes such as mild cheddar, sharp cheddar, pepper jack, mozzarella, and Swiss 
Then a few show stopper cheeses like apricot cheese, sage cheese (which was a HUGE hit), habanero cheese, and purple beer infused cheese. 
Brie was placed on it’s own tier with honey and honeycomb placed on top
More honey was placed in separate jars
​Fig jam
Regular and grainy mustards
Everything was garnished off with the leafy greens and rosemary from my garden.
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Be sure to have plenty of forks, tongs, and spoons for serving.

Talk about a statement piece for the party! Everyone loved it and it fit in perfectly with her elegant greenery theme. 


I still have dreams about that sage cheese… YUM.


If you are planning a shower, anniversary, or large party I would highly recommend laying out a spread like this one. 

The best part: NO COOKING WAS INVOLVED IN THE MAKING OF THIS BOARD! 


Feel free to drop any comments or questions below!


Thanks for reading!