Celebrating a holiday gathering with friends and family? If you want a quick and easy way to keep everyone happy and entertained, a cheese platter is a wonderful way to serve up appetisers. It’s easier than you might expect to put one together.
Choose Your Ingredients
Of course, you’ll need cheese for your cheese plate, but which ones? Aim to present a variety of both hard and soft cheeses so your guests have plenty to choose from. You should have:
An old favourite: Something like cheddar cheese or parmesan is always a hit. Why not include both? Or you can opt for a buffalo mozzarella, which is familiar, yet unique.
Something unique: Aim for a fun cheese that most people won’t have tried before, such as an herb-infused cheese or smoked Gouda, etc.
An aged cheese: Something with some real bite to it will add variety to your plate.
A goat cheese: You can select something basic and creamy, or look for an aged option.
Something classic: Gorgonzola or Brie is always a good choice.
Soft cheese may be presented in a bowl with a knife to smear it on bread or crackers. Hard cheeses should be cut into pieces so they are easy to pick up and guests don’t need to cut anything.
Other Ingredients
Once you have your cheese sorted, it’s time to add the extras. You’ll need at least two types of breads or crackers for spreading soft cheeses on, and three or four types of charcuterie. These might include prosciutto, chorizo, and smoked ham, or whatever elegant meats you enjoy.
Other items you may wish to include are:
Fruit (grapes are particularly appropriate)
Nuts
Olives
Vegetables
Select one or two of each of these to present on your platter.
Arrange Your Platter
Set out the bowls and cheeses first on a platter or tray of your choice. Then add in the meats, breads, and nuts. Fill in with fruits and vegetables and garnish your plate with fresh herbs.
Ideally, your platter will have more cheese than any other ingredient, but there should be a nice variety to keep everyone interested. You will need between 3-4 oz. of cheese per guest, but it’s always a good idea to have a little extra ready to set out should the need arise.
Give your guests small plates as they arrive and direct them to serve themselves cheese and charcuterie from the platter or platters. You’ll find that this is the perfect way to get your party off to a wonderful start. After all, who doesn’t love cheese?
Need some delicious cheeses to start off your holiday cheese platter? Here at Freshways, we have all the cheese you could want! Contact us today.