Hi guys! This past weekend was so much fun and I can’t wait to host the next girl’s night. I haven’t had one of these in so long and it was just what we needed! I wanted to give you a little run down of my weekend and how I made the boards. I find these are going to be a staple for any gatherings we have coming up and I’m sure they’ll be helpful for you guys to who plan to host this season!
I asked a few friends to come over for wine, charcuterie, and a cheesy Netflix Christmas movie night. Super simple, straight to the point. We did exactly that and we all had the best time together.
Friday I went out and got all the things I needed for the boards and made a little guide ahead of time. I used Pinterest to help me choose what to put on them but they were super easy to make.
Let’s start with the Savory board!
The day of, I prepped the Bruschetta and about 20 min prior to everyone coming, I baked the bread with some EVOO to crisp it. You can always prep the Bruschetta the night before as well to make it easy on yourself!
To make the Bruschetta:
Chop about 6 plum tomatoes, 1 small red onion, mince 3 garlic cloves and add them all in a small bowl together. Roll up some fresh basil and slice to create ribbons and add this to the mixture. Add in 1Tbsp EVOO and 1Tbsp Balsamic vinegar, mix and coat well. Let this marinate in the fridge until you are making the board.
Crusty ciabatta bread:
Preheat oven to 400F, prep baking sheet with parchment paper.
Slice bread and do a light coat of EVOO on one side. Place EVOO side down on baking sheet.
Bake for 8-10 min. Watch and make sure you don’t burn them!
I made about 8 slices for the 4 of us because there was so many other options on the board. The remaining bread I cut up in halves and placed on the board for the EVOO bread dip.
EVOO Bread Dip:
About 1/3 Cup EVOO, 1-2Tbsp Balsamic vinegar, and 3 garlic cloves minced.
I made this a few hours ahead and covered with plastic wrap so the garlic could infuse into the oil.
Before anyone came I added a shake of red pepper flakes and 1/2Tbsp dried basil. You can do this all at once. I decided to wait.
I bought a box of entertainment crackers (the variety box) and put this around the bruschetta, red pepper hummus, meats, fresh mozzarella, and bread dip along with the slice bread, pretzels, and everything but the bagel pretzel thins. I chose to put those in small dishes and I could always refill them as the night went on if I needed to.
You can always add other hard cheeses and meat to the board. I kept it simple with a couple varieties for everyone.
For the Dessert Boards I baked some small packs of Betty Crocker chocolate chip cookies and gingerbread. I knew I wouldn’t have time to bake these from scratch but if you think you will, I have a few small batch recipes on the blog already! Chocolate Chip cookies & Peanut Butter cookies.
I added chocolate hummus into a small dish and natural peanut butter in another. You can always swap this for a homemade chocolate dip/syrup and a caramel dip.
Sliced some apples and coat in lemon juice to keep from turning brown, cover and put these in the fridge until it is time to add them to the board. Some more pretzels on this board, the cookies, and to fill in the small empty areas, trail mix, little chocolate peanut clusters, and these little mini peanut granola bars. They’re about 1 inch big.
I also had some jarred peaches I sliced up and added to this board that I stuck in my wine!
We had a few different drink options. I made sure to grab some water bottles for everyone, a red and white wine, beer, and of course I have hot tea, coffee, etc here already for those who weren’t drinking.
Always a good idea to have other options.
I definitely plan to make a holiday board soon! I’m pre-planning what boards I will be making for that now. Tom and I used some of the left over bruschetta to make bruschetta chicken! It was delicious. I’m making this again tonight so I will add the recipe to the blog soon!
I hope this helps with your next gathering, especially with all the holidays coming. If you are local and you really don’t have time to make these, I highly recommend reaching out to my friend Jenn. She owns her own charcuterie business and makes the most beautiful boards! She made them for our wedding as well and everyone loved them. You can reach out to her here!
These are also easy to bring to any parties you are going to as well. Just some ideas 🙂
Happy Monday! I hope you all have a great week ahead.
Comment below if you plan to make these or what your favorite snacks are for your boards!
