CharcuterWHAT?!?
You guys. Have you discovered the magic of charcuterie boards yet?!? My first charcuterie experience was at Sweet Grass Dairy‘s Cheese Shop in Thomasville, Georgia. I was smitten. Cheeses. Jams. Pickles. Nuts. Oh, man!
Lately I’ve started creating my own charcuterie boards for my evening meals on days when I’m hungry, don’t want to cook, and want to keep things super simple. I use a small bamboo cutting board, and I add berries, a few pieces of whatever cheeses I have in the fridge, some walnuts, some pickles, and maybe a few slices of salami. Or pimento cheese! It’s different each time!
It’s the combo of sweet, sour, crunchy, salty, and creamy that makes it all work.
Last weekend we had some new friends over for lunch after church, and I wanted to serve them something special. Also, the temperature here in Coastal Georgia right now is “only slightly cooler than the surface of the sun,” as Jenny Colgan would say, so heating up the kitchen by cooking was NOT sounding like fun.
Solution: A gigantic charcuterie board lunch!
I had SUCH fun putting this together! Home Goods had a 3-pack of bamboo cutting boards, dried fruit, and crostinis, so that was a great start to my project. I ducked into TJMaxx and found a perfect little set of cheese knives. Woohoo! And then my beloved Publix provided everything else I needed.
(Want to hear a funny story? I totally forgot to take pictures of the amazing lunch! As we were cleaning up and packing the last few items in the fridge I remembered, groaned, and instantly decided to rebuild it all to get pictures to share here. LOL! The only things I forgot to put back out were the two kinds of salami. Ah well. Just use your imagination for that part!)
Behold! I really am chuffed with how this turned out!
I made little flags from card stock and toothpicks to identify the items that might not have been immediately identified: jerk turkey (spicy!) as opposed to smoked turkey, for instance, and sweet vs. dill pickles. Things like that.
I’ve listed all the items in a list down at the bottom of this post. Just enjoy the scroll for now!
*happy sigh*
Publix ALWAYS has what I’m looking for, and it usually has things I didn’t KNOW I needed but totally do! These hummusses are amazing! (Yes, we’re going to pretend that is the plural form of hummus.)
I upped my pickle game by adding these “mild” pepper rings along with regular dill and sweet gherkins. Bonus info: These pepper rings are SPICY, not mild!
The fun thing about charcuterie boards is that you can add whatever you’d like. Salami or other dried meats are usually a staple, and I included those, but I also added two kinds of turkey for those who prefer not to eat pork. I added fresh veggie sticks and hummus because I wanted plenty of non-bread options. Little toasts and crackers provided bread-y carbs for the carb lovers. Just be sure to feature contrasts like sweet, sour, salty, creamy, and crunchy!
Here’s a full list of what I used and where I got it.
From Publix:
Genoa Salami (Publix brand)
Herb-Coated Salami (Publix brand)
Boar’s Head Black Forest Turkey (Hickory Smoked)
Boar’s Head Jerk Turkey
Brie (Publix brand)
Boar’s Head Smoked Beechwood Wisconsin Cheddar
Chavrie Mild Goat Cheese with Cranberries and Candied Orange Peel
Blue Diamond Roaster Salted Almonds
Diamond Shelled Walnuts
Ithaca Cold-Crafted Fresh Lemon Dill Hummus
Ithaca Cold-Crafted Fresh Lemon Beet Hummus
Vlasic Kosher Dill Minis
Petite Sweet Gherkins (Publix brand)
Merzetta Deli-Sliced Mild Pepper Rings
Celery
Carrots
Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider
From Home Goods:
Asturi Bruschettini
Sunny Fruit Dried Figs
Wild & Raw Sun-Dried Organic Turkish Apricots
(The plates are Royal Doultan’s Pacific pattern.)
From Aldi:
Edam cheese
14 thoughts on “CharcuterWHAT?!?”
That is a great idea! You really “embellished” the usual cheese board!
I owe it all to Sweet Grass Dairy, Pinterest, and Google! LOL! Thanks for being a faithful reader! (And when are you coming to Savannah?!?)
I love charcuterie boards … they are a Christmas Eve tradition in our house, and I love to make them for small group. Such fun! And the possibilities are endless. Yours are gorgeous, and yummy looking!
What a PERFECT idea for Christmas Eve! And YES! Oh, the possibilities! I really enjoyed the creative/artsy part of this meal. Thanks for stopping by, Judy!
Oh, I love the little flags to identify the foods! We did a lot of chorizo, other meats, cheeses, etc like this when I lived overseas. I love pickles! This looks great!!
Thanks so much, Christie! I appreciate your stopping by and taking the time to leave a little note! I hadn’t thought about the international angle on this. Very cool!
I had never seen that word until I read it on Carrie’s blog. And then shortly after that, we were at a little bar and they had several types of charcuterie boards. I ordered one and it was scrumptious. Turns out I have been making them but not calling them that. You really have some unique and flavorful ideas for yours. Peppers. Pimento cheese. The goat cheese with cranberries and orange. Oh, boy, that sounds divine. Thank you for these great ideas. Pinning.
They make a lovely, simple meal, don’t they!
I can attest to the yumminess of this meal! The company was just as enjoyable. Thanks for the ideas!
That was a fun lunch!!! Thanks for sharing your time with us!
I have that little mouse and a cute little wooden block that says “I love cheese”…such a cute touch. Thanks for all the great ideas sweet friend 😘
Hooray for cute touches like this sweet mouse! And hooray for a good friend like YOU!
Finally circling back around to comment. Well done, you! Really does look amazing!
Thank you, Sheila! We’ll have to do this when we get together sometime!