Creative Meals for Today's Cook

  • Recipes
    • Courses
      • Appetizers
      • Breakfast & Brunch
      • Entrée
      • Sides
      • Salads
      • Soup
      • Baking
      • Desserts
      • Drinks
      • Snacks
      • Pantry
    • Cuisine
      • African
      • Asian
      • German
      • Indian
      • Italian
      • Latin
      • Mediterranean
      • Middle Eastern
      • Western
      • Fusion
    • Main Ingredient
      • Poultry
      • Pork
      • Beef
      • Lamb
      • Seafood
      • Eggs
      • Cheese & Dairy
      • Pasta
      • Rice & Grains
      • Noodles
      • Tofu
      • Vegetables & Fruit
      • Beans & Legumes
    • Diet
      • Vegetarian
      • Vegan
      • Pescetarian
      • Gluten Free
    • Seasons
      • Spring
      • Summer
      • Fall
      • Winter
    • Recipe Collections
      • Winter Holiday Recipes
      • New Year’s Eve
      • Sports Parties
      • Party Foods
      • Quick & Easy
      • Healthy
      • Fried Goodness
      • Special Occasions
      • Valentine’s Day Recipes
      • Easter Recipes
      • Mother’s Day
      • Grilling Out
      • Thanksgiving
  • Recipe Index
  • Video Gallery
  • Pantry
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

Make a Great Cheese Board

14 Comments

What you need to know to make a GREAT cheese board!

This is the time of year for lots of holiday parties and gatherings.  Whether you’re hosting or just bringing a dish to share at another event – a great cheese board is always a crowd pleaser and probably the easiest dish to put together!  Another great attribute to the cheese board, is that you can really customize it to you and/or your guests tastes, and you can change it up if you’re hosting multiple gatherings!  There is no right or wrong way to put together a selection of cheeses.  But there are a few guidelines that I like to follow to ensure a variety and complimenting flavors.  So how do you make a great cheese board??? First off, you want to think about how many people you are serving.  Generally speaking, you want plan for 1 to 2 ounces per person.  Once you’ve established the amount you need, what’s to consider next?:

What you need to know to make a GREAT cheese board!

  • A quick way to decide what cheeses to serve, is to choose a theme.  For example: a variety of cheeses from France or Spain.
  • Another route, is an assortment of various textures – a great way to make sure there’s something for everyone.  For example: a soft Brie, a semi-soft Stilton , a semi-hard Gouda, and a hard Grana Padano.
  • Another variety that pleases crowds, is to choose cheeses by milk type.  For example: a cow milk cheese like Pierre Robert (I was once told by a Frenchman in a very nice restaurant in Paris, ‘Pierre Robert is what Brie wishes it was’), a goat cheese like Humboldt Fog, and a sheep cheese like Zamorano.
  • I also like to serve charcuterie with a cheese board.  Personal favorites are Genoa Salami and/or my all-time love (while in Italy it single-handedly broke me of a 12 year vegetarian stint) Prosciutto de Parma, aka ‘God’s gift to meat’.
  • Some seasonal fruit is a very nice compliment to the rich flavors of cheese.  When in season; cherries, cantaloupes, red grapes, pears, and/or pomegranates seeds are great!  They also serve as a bit of a palate cleanser.  Other sweet components that are fantastic pairings are fig preserves and Membrillo (my personal favorite)!
  • Other items that I like to serve with a great cheese tray, are a small bowl of mixed olives and/or mixed nuts.  They’re small little bites that add texture and provide additional small snacks that please a crowd.
  • Greens for a garnish are always well received,  considering the aesthetics of a cheese board.  Several sprigs of fresh rosemary, sage, and/or thyme are not only beautiful and fragrant, they fill in any empty spaces.
  • Last, but certainly not least, are the vehicles to layer all of these flavors (the substrates, if you will), i.e. the bread/crackers.  A nice crusty exterior bread with a soft inside like French baguette are always great.  A crisp cracker variety is also nice, such as a nice sea salt or olive oil infused cracker for a crisp texture.

What you need to know to make a GREAT cheese board!

 

Cheese Board - with jam

There are an infinite number of ways to prepare a great cheese board!  Just remember to provide some variety to your guests, and this platter will certainly be one of the most popular dishes of the party!

 

How to Make a Great Cheese Board
 
Print
Author: Kathleen | Hapa Nom Nom
Ingredients
  • Saint-André Triple Crème
  • Cypress Grove Midnight Moon
  • Manchego
  • Genoa salami
  • Pomegranate seeds (or whatever is seasonal)
  • Fig preserves
  • Fresh red grapes (or whatever is seasonal)
  • Mixed olives
  • Mixed nuts
  • Baguette and/or nice crackers
  • Fresh sage and rosemary for garnish
Instructions
  1. Plate the items and garnish with fresh herbs. Serve with crackers, fresh fruit, and or bread. Serve and enjoy!
3.4.3177

 

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window)

Filed Under: Appetizers, Blog, Cheese & Dairy, Dishes, Easter Recipes, Fall, Italian, Mediterranean, Mother's Day, New Year's Eve, Party Foods, Quick & Easy, Recipes, Special Occasions, Sports Parties, Spring, Summer, Thanksgiving, Valentine's Day Recipes, Vegetarian, Winter, Winter Holiday Recipes Tagged With: appetizer, cheese, Christmas, cocktails, holidays, nuts, o'dourves, olives, Thanksgiving

« Roasted Kabocha Lasagna Rolls
Easy Orange-Maple Glazed Ham »

Comments

  1. FoodGeekGraze says

    November 13, 2015 at 3:34 am

    not only was this a lovely informative share (the beautiful herb suggestion rocked my world), but your “12 year vegetarian stint killer aka prosciutto de parma” comment made me giggle loud enough to wake my dog and make him quickly raise up his head all concerned like with both his lips jammed-stuck in his mouth (he is a boxer and their lips are often out of control) and his ears all bent over crazy-like. yummy and funny. and what’s up with that stupid long out of control sentence i just typed… hunger dissolving brain function here, kathleen.

    Reply
    • hapagirl says

      November 16, 2015 at 7:20 pm

      Lol! No worries! Seriously, I’m so sorry I’m just getting back to you – I just got back from conference in LA. While I was down there, I visited my aunt and uncle in Long Beach – they have a boxer too and she’s so sweet! Omg, I know what you mean about their lips being out of control! Her lip kept getting stuck on one tooth and her eyes would melt your heart – they just kept saying ‘please love me’. Aka, totally adorable! Aren’t dogs just wonderful?!

      Reply
  2. Mirta Porley says

    December 3, 2014 at 8:16 pm

    Great tips , thanks for sharing.Greetings from Uruguay

    Reply
    • hapagirl says

      December 4, 2014 at 9:28 am

      Thanks! 🙂

      Reply
  3. Meggan | Culinary Hill says

    December 1, 2014 at 5:05 pm

    I’ve seen (and drooled over) countless cheese boards, but yours really is gorgeous. I think part of it is the variety of colors you have going on here, not to mention all fabulous, delicious ingredients. All the fresh herbs just look so pretty! Stretch some plastic wrap over this baby and put it in the mail to LA. 🙂 Pinned x 2!

    Reply
    • hapagirl says

      December 2, 2014 at 8:22 am

      Aww…thanks for your kind words, Meggan! That’s why it makes such a great party dish! It looks so pretty, but it literally take only minutes to put together! And seriously, who doesn’t love cheese!? 🙂

      Reply
  4. Nagi@RecipeTinEats says

    November 24, 2014 at 6:15 pm

    I don’t understand how you can make me want to read a post on how to put together a cheese board. I saw your photo and instantly though “yup, she’s got everything I would put on one” and wanted to read what you had to say about cheese board protocol. Seriously, this could be a board I put together, I kid you not. Except you dolled yours up with pomegranates and herbs which I don’t usually do! 🙂

    Reply
    • hapagirl says

      November 25, 2014 at 7:04 pm

      Hi Nagi! I figured we would have similar tastes on this one! 🙂 Give the pomegranates a try with the Triple Creame – they compliment quite nicely!

      Reply
  5. Culinary Ginger says

    November 24, 2014 at 1:14 pm

    Now this is exactly how I would want my cheese board to look. A great read and beautiful post.

    Reply
    • hapagirl says

      November 25, 2014 at 7:02 pm

      Thank you! 🙂

      Reply
  6. Maggie says

    November 24, 2014 at 1:11 am

    What a beautiful picture and very helpful tips!
    It reminds me the first cheese plate I ever tried, while I was doing the student exchange program in Switzerland. I remember I didn’t dare to challenge the blue cheese (still cannot eat a lot) and I thought the goat cheese tasted strange. lol. Besides the varies types of cheese, I remember someone brought those mini skewer appetizer that is made from fresh mozzarella, olive and tomato. It’s really tasty for a cheese beginner, like me back then.
    Do you think it’s ok to serve mozzarella on a cheese plate? Some of my friends only eat very mild cheese.

    Reply
    • hapagirl says

      November 24, 2014 at 8:24 am

      What a wonderful memory! I LOVE Switzerland! The first time I traveled there, I was trying to think of a way I could stay there! 🙂

      Yes, I think it’s absolutely ok to serve mozzarella on a cheese plate! If you can find buffalo mozzarella, that cheese will change your life! They’re like soft, creamy, little pillows of deliciousness! Another fabulous cheese that is similar to buffalo mozzarella, but even creamier (if you can believe it!) is burratta. They both pair well with figs, grapes, pears, and peaches (when in season).

      Reply
  7. Mira says

    November 23, 2014 at 9:08 pm

    This is the most beautiful cheese board I’ve seen! Looks yummy, pinned and will make something similar for the holidays!

    Reply
    • hapagirl says

      November 24, 2014 at 8:14 am

      Thanks, Mira! Happy holidays! 🙂

      Reply

Please leave a comment! Cancel reply

Find a Recipe!

What’s hapa-ning?

Hi there, I'm Kathleen! On Hapa Nom Nom, food is a kind of connection. It’s a new take on fusion, and a deliciously modern way to think about food. Happy eating! Read More…

Subscribe to Hapa Nom Nom and get a FREE cookbook!

Email Address:

Recipes for Spring on Hapa Nom Nom

Recipes for Spring on Hapa Nom Nom

Most Popular Recipes on Hapa Nom Nom

Vermicelli Noodle Bowl with Pan Seared Salmon
Fish Tacos with Sriracha Aioli Slaw
Build Your Own Bowl
Quinoa Burrito Bowl

Quick and Easy Recipes on Hapa Nom Nom

Quick and Easy Recipes on Hapa Nom Nom
Creative Commons License
Hapa Nom Nom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at hapanom.com.

Sharing Recipes

All images, recipes, and text on this site are my intellectual property and are protected under copyright. You are welcome to write about my recipe in your own words; however, please re-write the recipe and instructions and link back to Hapa Nom Nom as the original source. Thank you!

Copyright © 2013 - 2016 Hapa Nom Nom LLC · All Rights Reserved · Hapa Nom Nom

Follow via Facebook Follow via Twitter Follow via Pinterest Follow via Instagram Follow via Tumblr Go to Mail to