Easy Charcuterie Board

9/25/2018

Putting together a charcuterie board is as easy as 1-2-3! And this one is even easier using just one type of ham and cheese. If you are ever looking for an easy pre dinner appetizer, this is a win all the way around.

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So we are having a bit of an Indian summer. And by Indian summer I don't mean beautiful autumnal days followed by crisp and chilly evenings sitting around a fire pit drinking cocoa and roasting marshmallows. No, I mean sweating your you know what's off though the day and surviving the nights in hopes of a breath of some kind of air. Yes, I am aware of where I live and I know September is generally hot, but 37? If it's a joke, I'm not laughing.

My absence around here lately is due to the sheer fact that I have been lacking any creative energy to cook new things or even write recipes. I think the heat has gotten the best of me. Help!

And I am finding myself in weather envy every time I turn to social media. I don't suffer from lifestyle envy, body envy, social status envy, popularity envy, just weather envy. Just one crisp leaf and maybe a breath of fresh air, that's all I'm asking for. Please weather Gods, send help!

So given the current heat situation, creating new recipes has been on the low. I did, however, this past weekend, make few new things that will be coming to the blog later this week. I am trying to get up at the crack of pre dawn early to write. Note I said pre dawn, not even dawn. Otherwise, the big ball of fire in the sky takes over and has this way of turning me into a zombie. It's amazing what you can get done at say 4:00 am....ha! Seriously though, no joke.

All weather aside, easy food is great when it's hot. Grilling meats, making crisp salads or even putting together a plate just like this one. All great ideas for when it's too hot for any kind of real cooking.

Notes about the charcuterie board:

This is just merely an idea to get the ball rolling. The fun thing about these boards is that you can use whatever you like or have for that matter. This was put together on a whim during one of our recent "too hot to cook" days.

On this board, I only used one type of ham and one type of cheese. You can use a variety, but I was just keeping this one simple. I think quite often people think you need three to four types of ham and cheese to make these boards successful. I think they are great no matter what you put on them.

Here's what I used!

Okay, I used a Spanish cured ham because I live in Spain and it's available everywhere, it's low cost and it's delicious. If this isn't available to you, just use a ham that you prefer. As well, I used a Spanish Manchego cheese (which I love), and it goes fantastic with the ham. Again, use cheese of your preference.

You will also see some little cherry tomatoes, olives, mixed nuts, grapes and a few basil leaves. The basil leaves not only add a touch of prettiness to the plate but go well with the tomatoes. I used grapes because that was the fruit I had on hand in my fridge. Figs also go wonderful on cheese platters. So keep all this in mind if you are going to make a board. And as for the bread, I simple sliced a baguette up in small pieces. You could use crackers or even make your bread crispy by putting it in the oven. It all works!

Also, I like to scatter my things throughout the board. Try arranging your cheese, ham, etc, in different sections of the plate. This is more a visual things than anything else. But also, it makes it easy to pick up everything in one little section.

A charcuterie board is a fun platter to put together for entertaining. It takes the stress our of making appetizers and generally most people will find something on the plate they like.

NOTE: In the "recipe" below I didn't state quantities, just what I used. As this isn't really a recipe, I didn't think quantities were overly important. You can make your plate using the quantities you like for however many people you are serving.

Happy cooking friends and I'll be back in a few days with a real recipe!

Easy Charcuterie Board

Serves 4 / Prep time: 10 minutes / Cook time: None

Ingredients

1 Baguette, cut into slices
Spanish Iberian Ham (or any ham of your choice)
Manchego Cheese
Kalamata olives
Tri colour cherry tomatoes
Fresh basil leaves
Mixed cocktail nuts
Grapes

Method

Cut bread into slices. Slice cheese. Arrange everything on a platter. That's it, easy!

Click the downloadable link below to print recipe!