What do you put on a Christmas Charcuterie Board?

The possibilities are endless. A good guide is to have a few cheese choices, a few meats (think salami, prosciutto, capocollo, pepperoni), nuts, olives, fruit that is currently in season, some sort of cracker or triscuits, potentially a spread like jam or cheese, and a type of sweet (chocolate, cookies, or chocolate covered pretzels).

What are some tips for making a charcuterie board?

1. Keep the meats surrounded by cheese, nuts and maybe olives. Don't have the meat touching veggies or fruit. 2. Do not use anything that turns brown. For example, apples and pears aren't the best choices for fruit. 3. In Summer, it is great to use fresh berries, but they tend to let fruit juices out. Put them in a bowl on the board, so it doesn't compromise foods around them. 4. If you are running out of room, put the crackers or pretzels in a bowl on the side instead of on the actual board. 5. Serve toothpicks or small forks and knives on the side to avoid people touching everything.

Whatever you have leftover, store in containers in the fridge or in sandwich bags, so you can keep on snacking, instead of wasting.

Christmas Tree Charcuterie Board

charcuterie items shaped in a christmas tree on a circle board

Print Recipe

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This Christmas Tree Charcuterie Board is so festive and fun to make. It's a great appetizer to bring to a Christmas party. Plus, no baking or cooking involved! Just organize these Christmas finger foods and it's ready to go!

Author: Tara Smithson
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 12 servings
Category: Appetizers
Method: no cook
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

1 Pepperidge Farm Chessmen Cookie (or use pretzel sticks)
1 and 1/2 cups of chocolate covered pretzels with peppermint
3 clementines, peeled and pulled apart into slices
1 tablespoon of pomegranate arils
1 cup pecans
8 ounces of cheddar cheese, used to cut the star out and remaining cheese cut into pieces for layering on board)
1 cup red grapes
1/2 cup green and kalamata olives
4 rosemary sprigs (optional for decoration)
1 sleeve of townhouse crackers
Boars head Charcuterie trio (6 ounce package) *Salami and Sopressata used for the rose and Capocolla for the folded pieces on the top of the board.

Instructions

For the tree trunk, add one cookie or whatever you choose. Pretzel sticks work great here too.
Next, begin the largest bottom layer. This is a great spot for sweets. Build upwards making each layer a bit less wider than the one before it, to form a Christmas tree.
Tip: Anything with liquid, make sure it is very dry before placing it. For example, with olives, make sure to let them dry on a paper towel before adding them to the board.
Top with a star, by cutting it out with a knife (a bit tricky), or use a cookie cutter. Easiest way is to just use a chessmen cookie bell.
Place the rosemary sprigs along the outside of the tree shape.
For the meats on the outside, fold them up however you would like. The salami rose is always a favorite too. (There is a video in the post above for instructions)
Be creative and enjoy!

Equipment

charcuterie board

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Notes

Make sure to dry off any wet ingredients, like fruit or olives, before placing them on the board.

Don't put meats close to fruit or sweets. Try to place them near olives, nuts or cheese.

Save any extra ingredients to refill once eaten!

Find it online: https://simplymadeeats.com/6606/christmas-tree-charcuterie-board/