Halloween Charcuterie and Cheese Board

Hello and Welcome to the Djalali House for Halloween! No matter if you are having friends and family over for tonight’s festivities; or if you’re just handing out candy, a Charcuterie and Cheese Board is the perfect light meal. When a sit-down dinner might be interrupted by trick-or-treaters, a cheese board means you can graze on the cheeses, meats, crackers and fruit all evening. Make it festive with mini pumpkins, plastic spiders and a skull of brie! It doesn’t take long to put together, just a little planning. Let’s do it!

Start by selecting your board. Go for the largest board you have for a group, or a medium-sized board for a couple. Then decide which items on your board will need bowls; things like olives, pickled veggies, or mozzarella pearls. Then place those bowls on the board. Also consider the containers for jelly, jam and mustard; and place those on the board, along with any larger decorations like mini pumpkins.

I found these dark purple (almost black), oblong-shaped grapes called Moon Drops, but any type of grapes you like are perfect. Grapes on a cheese board not only look really pleasing, but they’re a great pop of cool, juicy sweetness to go alongside salty meats and rich cheeses. Place the bunches of grapes on the board next, because they are quite large.

Cheeses

Next, place the cheeses. Cheese needs to come up to room temperature, so it’s perfect timing for it to go next. Plan on three to five cheeses of varying texture. I have two semi-hard cheeses: Gruyere and a whiskey cheddar. For my soft cheese, I have brie and Boursin. And then I have some marinated mozzarella pearls. When you place the cheeses, you can fill up a little tray or bowl with olives and/or pickled vegetables.

The brie is a small wheel of brie that I sliced two wedges out of on the sides of the bottom third to create the shape of a skull. Then I made vertical slices in the remaining middle section at the bottom to resemble teeth. Very spooky!

Meats

Now for the meat! Try to have a few different types of cured meats. I have soppressata which is a dry salami, sliced in rounds; prosciutto, and coppa. Make a little folded bundle out of each piece of the coppa and the prosciutto. As for placing the meats, nestle them in next to the cheeses.

Crackers

Charcuterie and Cheese Boards are all about variety, same for the crackers. I have some whole grain Triscuits, stone ground wheat crackers, red pepper-flavored crackers and sourdough crackers. Like the meats, nestle rows of crackers or slices of baguette between and around the meats and cheeses. Wherever they fit.

I also have some soft pretzel bites to fill in some of the empty spaces. Now we are ready for the condiments. I have whole grain mustard and sweet/hot pepper jelly. To complete my brie skull, I dolloped two small spoon fulls of fig jam; adding two smaller dollops for nose holes. Now is also the time to place the cheese knives and spoons for the condiments.

Halloween Charcuterie and Cheese Board

I had an empty spot that I filled with pomegranate seeds. You could fill in empty spots with dried fruits and nuts, too. I also had some fresh sage in the fridge, so I placed sage sprigs on the board for color. You could place fresh rosemary sprigs, too. Lastly, I placed a few black spiders to make things a little more creepy and festive.

Ready to Serve

I have a few Halloween decorations on the table, along with Halloween-themed plates and napkins. Place toothpicks in a few of the mozzarella pearls and place extra toothpicks along side the board.

We are all set! Around the second week of October, I pulled my summer decor and swapped in my Halloween decor. We don’t get crazy with decorations any time of year, but I do like to have a few things around to capture the seasons and holiday spirit. I want to share a few pics with you.

This is the front view of our home. We have a lot of little kids in our neighborhood, so I prefer to go on the less-scary side with our Halloween decoration. Although the 7 foot tall ghost at the arbor is pretty creepy!

We have LED flame pumpkins at the front door that light up with flickering flame light at sunset, and a large wreath with skulls and Spanish moss on the front door.

The skulls and Spanish moss continue inside; as you enter the foyer, we have a black urn with a scary skull arrangement to greet our guests (and the FedEx guy).

The rest of our decor is restrained and minimal. We have black metal jack-o-lanterns on the mantle, with a faux arrangement of fall leaves, black Chinese lanterns and black maple leaf branches.

On the screened porch, where I have set up our Charcuterie and Cheese Board, I have a large black metal jack-o-lantern, ceramic Day of the Dead sugar skull planters and fresh sunflowers.

It’s not a lot, but our home is small, and it’s just enough decor to liven things up a bit and get into the spirit of the season. I do hope you enjoyed this little tour of our Halloween decor! Do give the Halloween Charcuterie and Cheese Board a try, it’s easy, quick and fun! Thanks for joining me for this Halloween Sunday Supper! Remember you can always catch up on recent Sunday Suppers for more inspiration. Have a happy and safe Halloween, everyone! Take care and be well, xo Kelly

Print Recipe

Halloween Charcuterie and Cheese Board

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If you are hosting friends for tonight's festivities; or if you're just handing out candy, a Charcuterie and Cheese Board is perfect for grazing.

Ingredients

• Halloween or Fall decoration such as mini pumpkins, gourds, skulls, and spiders
• Seasonal Fruit such bunches of Grapes, Pomegranate, Apples
• Variety of Cheeses such as Brie, Gruyere, Havarti, Cheddar, Fontina, Boursin, Mozzarella Pearls
• Variety of Cured Meats such as Prosciutto, Coppa, Salami, Soppressata
• Variety of Crackers and/or baguette slices, Soft Pretzel Bites
• Condiments such as Whole Grain Mustard, Fruit Jams and Spreads
• Dried Fruits such as Apricots, Raisins, Dried Cranberries and Cherries
• Nuts such as Pecans, Walnuts and Almonds
• Pickled Veggies and/or Olives

Instructions

1

Map out your board by placing bowls for pickled veggies or olives, mozzarella pearls and small dishes for condiments.

2

Place the larger decorative items like mini pumpkins, gourds or skulls.

3

If you have bunches of grapes, place those on the board.

4

Place the cheeses on the board.

5

Place the meats near the cheeses. If you have prosciutto or coppa, make little bundles of each slice.

6

Place rows of crackers near the meats and cheeses.

7

Fill the bowls with olives, mozzarella pearls; fill the condiment dishes with selected condiments.

8

Fill in the empty areas of the board with dried fruits and nuts, or soft pretzel bites.

9

Finally place any smaller decoration like spiders strategically around the board.

10

Place a shot glass next to the board containing toothpicks for guests to pick olives, mozzarella pearls, meats and slices of cheese.

To Make a Brie Skull

11

Use a small wheel of brie and cut wedges out of the sides of the bottom third of the cheese. Between the cut bottoms, use the tip of your knife to make four vertical slices in the brie, to resemble teeth. Dollop two small spoon fulls of fig jam for eye sockets and two smaller dollops for nose holes.