Basic Cheese Platter

Cheese platter

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The holiday season is upon us and it’s time to prepare for this festive time of year, especially if you will be hosting and preparing wonderful meals. Creating a simple, elegant, and delicious cheese platter or a cheese board is a great start to a gathering with friends and family.

I created the “basic cheese platter” illustrations above as a guide to help answer some of the questions as to what could be included on the cheese platter.  Once familiar and comfortable with preparing it, have fun experimenting with other items by changing or adding to it depending on the season or occasion.

Cheese platter, quick tips

Cheeses – The three basic go to cheeses I like to use are brie {mild/buttery flavor}, sharp cheddar cheese {medium/intense/nutty flavor}, and blue cheese {strong/bold flavor}.  Here are the other varieties that might be of interest to include, Gruyère cheese, Gouda cheese, Mozzarella, Goat cheese, Stilton, havarti, camembert, cheddar, Manchego, Pecorino Romano, and Roquefort.

Crackers & Bread –  Offer 2 to 3 varieties of crackers and/or bread {baguette} with different shapes and sizes.

Meats – Preserved meats {salami, prosciutto} and sea food {marinated shrimp, smoked salmon}.  Smoked salmon is a must have for our family.

Fresh/dried fruits – grapes, pears, apples, apricots, figs, dates, and berries.

Nuts – The crunchy and salty texture of nuts {almonds, walnuts, pistachios, pecans, walnuts, and cashews} just give it another taste and texture to it all.

Others –  honey, vegetables, jams, roasted garlic, and olives

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Cheese platter

I like to keep the cheese platter simple with just enough variety, texture, flavor, and color without it looking cluttered and over crowded. To bring out the flavor of the cheese, let it rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes before serving.  When the cheese plate is visually pleasing, everything seems to taste even better.

Here are a few more ideas on how to create an inviting, beautiful, and tasty cheese platter…..

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Cheese platter by Kara Rosenlund

– via Kara Rosenlund –

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cheese platter, williams sonoma

– via Williams-Sonoma –

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Cheese platter, Jennifer yoyce

– via Jennifer Joyce –

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cheese platter William Sonoma1

– via Williams-Sonoma –

Cheese platter, Martha Stewart 3

 – via Martha Stewart –

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Cheese platter

– via Dust Jacket / Once Wed

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Cheese platter

A cheese platter takes the guess work out of what your guests might like.  They will enjoy picking and choosing the variety of delicious items from it.

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 Have a blessed Thanksgiving!

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Cheese Plate Sources: Beecher’s Flagship white Cheddar ⎜ Long Clawson English Stilton  ⎜ Trader Joe’s: Double Creme Brie with Truffles  ⎜ Trader Joe’s Smoked Sockeye Salmon {with cracked peppercorns, mustard seed, lemon}  or Trapper’s Creek Smoked Salmon  ⎜ Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Cranberry Crisp  ⎜ Columbus Lite Italian Dry Salame  ⎜ La Panzanella Artisanal Foods Co Croccantini Original Artisan Crackers  ⎜ Grand Central Baking Co Rustic Baguette  ⎜ Olives from Whole Foods/Olive Bar  ⎜ Bartlett Pears  ⎜ Satsuma Mandarins


posted by Kay

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4 Responses to Basic Cheese Platter

  1. Botanic Bleu November 22, 2014 at 7:00 pm #

    Kay,
    All of your cheese boards look delicious. Thanks for sharing all these gorgeous photos of your wonderful recommendations.

    Judith

    • Kay November 23, 2014 at 9:04 pm #

      You’re welcome Judith. I was just given the list of what to bring for Thanksgiving and one of the things I will be responsible for is to put together a cheese platter… it will be fun to put another cheese platter together and maybe some pigs in blankets too for the kids.

  2. Neely November 28, 2014 at 7:44 pm #

    That illustration is so pretty, Kay! It would make such a nice print to hang in a kitchen. And those cheese platters — yum! Love all the variety!

    • Kay November 30, 2014 at 9:27 am #

      Thank you Neely for the idea, I will have to check into the different options on how to print it – maybe as cards too. I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

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