How To Set Up An Easy Cheese Board For A Dinner Party
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Christmas is the one time of year that I break out the cheese board – we are a family of cheese fiends, so it’s a snack that goes down very well on Christmas Night and on Boxing Day!
A cheese board is so easy to set up, and it also makes a nice round-up at the end of a dinner party.
Everyone has their preferred and favourite cheeses – blue cheese is a no-no for us, so it’s rarely included (sorry blue cheese fans!) on my cheese boards. I like to have a mix of 5 or 6 different cheeses to suit everyone’s tastes, as well as a selection of crackers, fruit and nuts.
How to set up an easy cheese board
You will need…
- a wooden board (any shape you like)
- a cheese knife for each cheese (or regular sharp knives if you don’t have cheese ones)
- a selection of cheeses
- a selection of crackers and biscuits
- a selection of accompaniments
I was sent this lovely cheese board from Culture Vulture. A large (35cm), round and sturdy board which fit everything I needed, perfectly. I also received some gourmet cheese knives which I think are just gorgeous and looked awesome on the cheese board.
The Cheese
Of course, you could theme your cheese board around different countries or types of cheese, but to keep things easy (when you’ve got enough to stress about when throwing a dinner party!) here is what I would usually put on a cheeseboard:
- A hard cheese – such as Cheddar or Red Leicester or Emmental
- A crumbly cheese – like a Cheshire or Wensleydale.
- A soft cheese – like Brie or Camembert or Goats Cheese
- A blue cheese – like Stilton or Roquefort
- A blended cheese – whilst we don’t like blue cheese, we really enjoy a White Stilton with Apricot and another favourite is Double Gloucester with Chives and Onion
The British Cheese Board is a wealth of information about cheese and thanks to them I was able to categorize my cheese selection for you!
The Crackers & Biscuits
Second to the cheeses are the crackers and biscuits.
Most supermarkets sell selection boxes, and this is the easiest thing to buy.
I love the sweetness of Digestive biscuits to go with a strong Cheddar, and then something light, like a water cracker to go with a Brie.
I also love the texture of oat cakes.
Then there are whole grain crackers, or crackers with poppy seeds, and even flavoured crackers with chilli or black pepper.
Pick your favourites!
The Accompaniments
Finally, there are the accompaniments – things like chutneys, jams, and relishes are fantastic; you can buy them ready-made, or make them yourself.
Check out these cheese and jam pairings for the perfect combos for your cheese board.
Celery is a favourite on cheese boards, but I really can’t do celery! I like a selection of fruit, which I find helps to cut through the creaminess of the cheese.
Fruit like grapes, apples, and figs will often appear on my cheese board. I sometimes add dried fruits like cranberries or apricots, as well as nuts.
My rosemary and chilli almonds were good with this cheese board I set up for our Christmas party last weekend.
The Create the Holidays series on The Purple Pumpkin Blog features free printables, crafts, recipes, and more for Christmas and the Winter Holidays. Check out Create the Holidays (formerly Create Christmas) from 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, and 2012.
