Building a Cheeseboard…
/Hello Fellow Travelers!
If you noticed like many, the six months leading up to the holidays were completely overrun with social media posts about cheeseboards, building cheeseboards, and using the word “Charcuterie” in as many sentences, headings, and posts as they could…Let me tell you, this will not be one of those blog posts!! Oh sure, I love seeing how creative people can be with designing beautiful displays with cheeses and meats, although many are not practical.
About six weeks ago, I was approached by a retailer that wanted to work with me to create a presentation on building a cheeseboard and some of the thoughts and practices that make up a good one. I enjoyed writing about it, but I didn’t know that I would need to put it in practice as soon as I did.
On December 10th, my daughter completed her final class in college and was finally able to breathe after four years of hard work and could finally call herself a college graduate!
WOW!!...I was so very proud of her accomplishments, and I also knew that this was cause for a great celebration to recognize her efforts. Great celebrations call for a great cheeseboard…right!? Julia Child once said “A party without a cake is just a meeting”, so of course, this Cheese Traveler was going to have to assemble a great cheeseboard!
As I wrote a few weeks ago, I just bought a home and all of the joys and headaches that come along with it. One of the first headaches that I encountered was realizing that one of the beautiful oak trees on my property was dead and was going to have to come down. But I was not going to cut up this beautiful tree for firewood…No, I wanted to do something unique with the lumber, so I talked to my friend Tyler about an idea I had. Once the tree was down, I had him save a five foot section of the trunk that was nice and straight. Tyler then used a milling attachment on his chainsaw to create beautiful oak planks. A $100 belt sander, three hours of intense sanding, and four coats of food-grade varathane, and I was ready to go shopping for my new 46-pound, 5’ tall cheeseboard!...Now that is how to build a cheeseboard!
When picking out products for a cheeseboard, I just try these simple thoughts:
· Picking your cheeses – I try and select a range of cheeses made from different milks (2 cow, 1 goat, 1 sheep) and build from there. When picking the types of cheese, I choose a variety ranging from Fresh to Semi-Soft, to Hard. I like to pick one that everyone might recognize and mix it up with three that they have never heard of. Need more suggestions?...Ask your cheesemonger what’s in season, their favorites, etc. they can also help you stay on budget.
· Placing the cheeses – Start by adding the pieces of cheese that you plan on leaving whole, as well as any jars or small bowls (think preserves, local honey, marinated cheeses, olives, mustards). Place these on opposite ends and have the whole pieces of cheese be nearest the edges for easy cutting access.
· Fill in the blank spaces - Frame these whole pieces and jars/bowls with triangles of pre-sliced cheeses, sliced cured meats, dried fruits (apricots, figs), salted/spiced nuts, broken pieces of chocolate, or edible flowers. When placing crackers/breads, I try and place them near the cheese items they might complement best.
Keep it fun while laying these out. Try cutting the cheeses into different shapes, using different tools (example: a wavy vegetable knife, diamond shapes, bars, etc). Cookie cutters can work great as well.
Life is worth celebrating! Gather your family, friends, and loved ones together often and enjoy good company, good foods, and you will be left with a lifetime of wonderful memories like I have….*Please note: cutting down your own tree is optional.
Packing my bags for my next adventures…Look for me in the cheese aisles
Cheers!
Trevor
