4th of July Charcuterie Board

The Summer entertaining season is in full swing- how did the 4th of July show up so soon? That said, summer is one of the most fun and easy times to entertain. We are going to help make your entertaining easier by walking through a few of our favorite 4th of July Charcuterie Boards that you can create at home.

A charcuterie board is an appetizer served on a wooden board, large platter or a large handled basket or even a tray. Typically, they include meats, cheeses, starches and other accompaniments. In recent years, we have seen how boards are a great way to entertain and can be tailored to each season and to your guests tastes. There are many ideas out there- even meal boards. Also, they are a wonderfully creative way to add an interesting centerpiece to your tablescape for any gathering. They are perfect for a larger crowd as well and are a great ice breaker for your guests.

4th of July Charcuterie Board

Creating a 4th of July Charcuterie board is easy and the possibilities are endless. Start by planning what your guests would like. We typically use the 3-3-3-3 rule-three cheeses, three meats, 3 starches and 3 accompaniments. Many foods in these categories are already red and white and by adding blue colored foods you add a patriotic spirit to your Independence Day Celebration. More ideas are a star cookie cutter for sliced cheese or other foods, star shaped treats, miniature flags, flowers and striped treats to name a few. Impress your guests with your creativity! We love the idea of using the Charcuterie Board as a centerpiece.

How To Make A Charcuterie Board For The 4th of July

First purchase all of the ingredients. This way you will have an idea of the size board, platter or basket that you will need. Gather your board/platter and any other dishes you will need to serve with.

Click here for easy spring appetizers and salads

Ingredients

Choose three cheeses- Babybel cheese is perfect with it’s red wrapping. Then the other choices- Hard Cheeses- parmesan, asiago or aged gouda. Firm cheeses- cheddar, colby, swiss. Semi-soft- havarti or muenster. Soft cheeses- burrata, boursin, brie. Blue cheeses and crumbly cheese such as feta. For this board try the Babybel cheese, parmesan and cheddar.

Choose three meats- salami, prosciutto, ham, cured sausages, pate. For this board try two types of salami and one type of proscuitto.

Choose three starches- multigrain crackers, rosemary and raisin crips, water crackers, cheese crackers, bread sticks, pretzels, crostini. For a dessert board- cookies, yougurt covered pretzels, graham crackers, pound cake slices. Let your guests and your’s tastes rule this. For this board try multigrain crackers, the rosemary and raisin crisps and cheese crackers.

Choose three accompaniments. This can be your vegetables, fresh fruits, dried fruits, nuts, dips, olives, spreads, cornichons and such. You can add more than three categories here. For this board try red peppers, olives, cucumbers, carrots- blue berries, nuts and olives.

Instructions

Step 1.

Fill your small bowls or ramekins with dips, mustards, jams, spreads or items that need to be contained. Choose your platter, board or tray you will use

Step 2.

Place cheeses starting in the middle and fan out towards the edges.

Step 3.

Place the meats along side the cheeses, then add whatever dips or mustard you want to serve with them.

Step 4.

Add the crackers, arranging on different areas of the tray.

Step 5.

Add the remaining accompaniments, filling in those empty spaces. Add decorations and voila- you have a beautiful appetizer for your guests.

4th Of July Charcuterie Board Ideas

In addition to the trays we have featured above, here are some other ideas.

Red, White And Blue Chips and Cheese

Place separate amounts of red, white and blue tortilla chips on a tray surrounding a bowl placed in the center with your favorite queso cheese dip. Place small bowls of salsas around the edges.

Fruit and Dips

Place blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and blackberries separately on a tray. In the center, place one or two bowls of fruit dip- like a yogurt fruit dip or a cream cheese fruit dip. Make watermelon kabobs skewered and placed to separate the fruits. Sprinkle dried cherries, dried cranberries or dried bluberries on top for a patriotic look.

Dessert Tray

This is an easy tray to assemble. Choose from star shaped cookies, vanilla mini-cupcakes, vanilla or raspberry yogurt covered pretzels, milk chocolate covered blueberries, strawberry licorice twists, Swedish fish candy, M & M’s in red, white and blue, cookie biscuits, stilton cheese with blueberries. Fruit kabobs made with blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries and bananas. Here is the one that we assembled. This is a big hit with kids!!

Happy 4th of July to All

Bev and Val

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