How to Build a Basic Cheese Board

The best part? There is there is no right or wrong way to build a cheese board!  Let me say it again, YOU CAN’T SCREW THIS UP. Sure, you can get creative and make these quite the works of art, but let’s be honest, meat, cheese, and crackers on a plate is easy on the eyes.  

All my friends know my love language is quality time and Charcuterie boards. I LOVE creating them, looking at them, but mostly eating them.  Pretty much any event at the Cokers includes some time of meats and cheeses and all the things. So with the holidays around the corner, I’m sharing a few of my go to tips for building a basic (but show stopping) Cheese Board.  

1. Flat surfaces work great whether a large wood chopping block or forgo the platter and use the counter! If you want to go BIG, simply cover your surface (a buffet, bar, table or counter) with paper (think rolled craft paper) and get to work.  
2. For a simple board, a good checklist to go by is 3-4 cheeses, 1-2 meats, 1-2 spreads, a fruit, crackers, and 1-2 “accessories” (olives, chocolate, nuts, etc.).  Some of my favorite yummy and aesthetically pleasing goodies to add to a board are:

Garnishes:

• Fresh Rosemary + Florals
• Dried Oranges
• Halved pomegranate or figs
  

When choosing your ingredients, try to have a variety of colors (ya know, aesthetics, but sister, don’t overthink it!) 

I start with my cheeses and build around them; they’re the stars of the show after all.  One of the things that make a Cheese board so beautiful is the abundance of colorful goodness, so keep things close together, and fill in all the spaces!  Depending on the season, you can get creative with color schemes, themes, and layouts. For winter, I like having dark jams, purple grapes, and seasonal additions (like a warm, rosemary brie), and for summer, I lighten things up–melons, mints, fresh fruit jellies, and a lighter color palette. When you slay your next get together, and build a cheese board, I want to see it! Be sure to tag me on Instagram with a picture of your work of art!  

Stay tuned for a feature soon with the talented Lauren, known as the Atlanta Cheese Girl!