You can’t beat the wonder and simplicity of a good cheese board. Laden with a selection of the most delicious pairings, complex textures, and beautiful flavors, it’s always a showstopping addition to any table. This easy cheese board is perfect for the holidays, entertaining, or even a family dinner.
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Why We Love Cheese Boards
Not only are they beautiful to look at, but they are also so easy to put together. Once you have the cheese, it’s a matter of minutes for the rest to come together. And best of all, a perfect cheese board has something for everyone. It satisfies salt and sweet cravings alike, lets you experiment with various combinations, and is the most fun finger food.
How To Make The Perfect Cheese Board
More often than not, your fridge and pantry will already have a bunch of great sides to help whip up a balanced cheeseboard in no time! You don’t need anything fancy, as long as the cheese is good.
Basic crackers, nuts, and seasonal fruits or veggies will then round it up perfectly. Feel free to add cured meats of your choice too. I kept this one meat-free.
What inspired me to make this board was the wonderful range of cheese from the good people at Kumaoni Blessings. But please use whatever cheese is easily available to you.
1. Cheeses
I used 4 kinds of cheeses, a mix of hard, semi-hard, soft, and semi-soft. I prefer keeping the selection of cheese no more than 3 or 4, to avoid confusing the palate.
- Garlicky pepper-crusted cheese: a hard cheese with a crumbly texture with a deep nuttiness.
- Truffle mushroom cheese: a semi-hard cheese similar to gouda in flavor. Great with simple salty crackers.
- Camembert: a soft cheese that can be baked or eaten at room temperature. It’s creamy and rich, so good with hard crusty bread.
- Reblochon-style rind cheese: a semi-soft, delicate, and creamy cheese with a strong aroma.
2. Fruits
The pairing of fruits and cheese is a true testament to the saying - opposites attract. The sweetness and tang of fruits balance out the saltiness and creaminess of cheeses, unlike any other accompaniment.
For the same reason, wine and cheese are such a winning combo - the acidity and sweetness of fruits cut through the creaminess of the cheese and unlock its flavors well.
I used plenty of fresh grapes, cherry tomatoes, and strawberries, along with some dried apricots. We also added a delicious strawberry preserve that went great with the crackers.
3. Crackers & Bread
It’s amazing how a simple cracker and a slice of cheese can make the taste buds sing. I used plenty of salty crackers and classic baked breadsticks. You can use any kind of bread or crackers you like. We also love my easy everyday bread, sourdough discard crackers, and simple sweet potato crackers on our cheese boards.
4. Other nibbles
Olives, gherkins, and nuts rounded up the arrangement, adding some crunch and kicks of salty flavor!
Note - often a cheese platter will include deli meats, like salami. If you are planning on including a few cured meats, simple chorizo, salami, or prosciutto would be great.
How To Arrange The Cheese Board
What makes a cheese board so fun is that there is no mandatory method to the madness. As long as you have your cheese in place, the rest of the elements can be loaded up around it.
- Use a flat surface - it can be a board, platter, plate, or tray.
- Set the cheeses on it at room temperature (or bake the brie/camembert if you prefer serving that way).
- Place the fruits/veggies around the cheeses.
- Add little bowls for the honey/preserves/olives, etc., if needed.
- Fill in the nuts in the extra spaces.
Add in wine or champagne of your choice, and you’re all done!
FAQs
As a rule of thumb, I make sure we have a mix of soft, semi-hard, and hard cheeses. From that point, it's about selecting flavors that suit the accompaniments you can include. Bread, crackers, fruits, nuts, meats - there is an endless array of options. So if you start with the cheese, it helps to shortlist the rest accordingly!
The list is endless! Pick and choose from the following to make your perfect cheese board:
Bread/crackers - crunchy baguettes, sourdough, plain or salty crackers, breadsticks, ciabatta, crostinis.
Fresh Fruits or Veggies - grapes, berries, apples, oranges, pears, tomatoes, carrots.
Dried Fruits - apricots, dates, figs.
Olives/Pickles
Nuts - Walnuts, almonds, cashews, pine nuts.
Spreads/Jams - fruit jams or preserves like my easy cherry jam, persimmon jam, pear butter, or even honey
Dips - dips are a great addition to cheese boards. Try my easy fried pickle dip,
pistachio pesto, or whipped goat cheese dip!
Garnishes - rosemary, thyme, basil.
Olive oil - for dipping or adding on top of brie/camembert. Use a good quality extra-virgin olive oil, or this easy chili oil, or even any one of these homemade infused oils!
Poornima Puri says
Perfect date night treat! Can't wait to try this. I can't find a good hard cheese I like locally, so just going to double up on soft cheese. How many did this serve?
Natasha Minocha says
It really is! This served 4 comfortably, with a little to spare.