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BOARDING SCHOOL
The Green Market’s
Liliana Dougan
dishes on how to make the perfect
charcuterie board.
A charcuterie board is really a form of art and an expression of your creativity. You start with a blank canvas (the board) and fill it in with cheeses, meats, crackers, nuts, olives, chocolate— your imagination can make anything possible. I like to make a charcuterie board in place of a cooked meal in the heat of the summer, served with a crisp rosé or white wine while sitting on my back deck with my family and friends watching the sunset.
INGREDIENTS:
Cheeses:
- Vermont Shepherd Verano sheep’s milk cheese—sweet and earthy, smooth and creamy
- Vermont Shepherd Invierno cow’s and sheep’s milk cheese—a winter hard cheese, aged 5-6 months with rich butter and mushroom flavors
- Bluebird Reserve from Grey Barn Creamery on Martha’s Vineyard—a 180-day aged blue cheese that’s rich and buttery with hints of butterscotch and rock candy
- Nancy’s Camembert from Old Chatham Creamery—a silky, buttery and bloomy triple crème cheese made from cow’s and sheep’s milk
- Champlain Valley Creamery’s Pyramid Scheme—a triple crème cheese with a layer of vegetable ash, creamy with grassy flavors
- Truffle stracciatella (the center of burrata) with olive oil and balsamic vinegar
Meats:
• Prosciutto
• Genoa salami
• Vegan fig salami with hints of tikka masala
Accoutrements:
• Olives
• Dried fruit
• Fresh fruit
• Corn nuts
• Maple sesame seeds
• Crackers
• Breads
• Crackers
• Finished with fresh edible flowers and herbs
PROCESS
The art of creating a charcuterie board is to play around with the shapes and get creative with the process. Cut the cheeses and arrange them on the board, followed by the meats. Create roses with the salami by folding the slices into thirds and placing them in a circle on the board until you create a rose-like effect.
Fold the prosciutto in half lengthwise, then fold the slice into a fan and place each slice on the board in a row to create a row of prosciutto fans. Slice the vegan salami and make a snake design on the board around the cheese.
The rest of the process is basically filling in empty spaces, so use your imagination. You can create neat rows or be a bit less structured with the placement of the fillers. Place corn nuts and dried fruit on the board to fill in the spaces between the cheeses and the meats. I chose corn nuts for their color and crunchy texture.
Olives go next, either in a small bowl or right on the board. Place fresh fruit next; it can be slices of apples or peaches, or cherries, strawberries, really whatever you have on hand. Then place slices of baguette and crackers around the board or within the rows of the board to build it up and again fill in any empty spaces.
Finish it all off with fresh edible flowers. I chose Rosa rugosa, pansies and basil flowers along with fresh oregano and rosemary stems, all things I had growing outside or in my kitchen.
Voilà! Dinner is done!
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