This Thanksgiving Charcuterie Board has everything you need to create a professional looking cheese board in your home for only $60! All the ingredients are from Trader Joe’s and the step-by-step instructions will show you how to put them together to create a beautiful board for your Thanksgiving or holiday table.
Thanksgiving Charcuterie Board Tutorial
If you’re looking for the perfect Thanksgiving appetizer, look no further than this hearty board of meats and cheeses, crackers, fresh and dried fruit, and snacks.
You can copy this charcuterie board step by step and use it with confidence for your big day. (And all the holidays and parties beyond that!)
Just change the decorations for the seasons – add small pumpkins and dried cranberries in the fall, swap out seasonal fruits like berries in the summer, or make the holiday red, white, and green version!
When you look at the finished board, it is difficult to know how much everything you can buy, so we have done all the hard work for you and we have everything from your shopping list to the details of how to cut the cheese (har har har) and organize each group of ingredients into beautiful layers.
Once you get the hang of the formula and method, you’ll be able to design your own boards using whatever ingredients you desire.
What’s On Our Board: Ingredients for a cheese board
3 Cheese
a variety of different types of cheese will please everyone. I love soft cheeses like brie, sharp cheeses like cheddar, and manchego or gouda!
3 Meat
these come in 3-packs at Trader Joe’s for convenience! Look for a variety of flavors from mild to spicy
4 Types of crackers
choose 3-4 different types, including cool ones like cheese dishes, neutral ones, and maybe sweet ones too!
Dried Fruit
TJs candied oranges are sweet and delicious + dried apricots or cranberries are great
Fresh fruits
Clear apples and grapes in both colors
Figs save
Nuts
Truffle marcona almonds = 100%. Cash. Salted or smoked almonds. Chocolate almonds!
Fresh herbs
And the best part? The whole board is only $60 at Trader Joe’s!
Charcuterie Board Shopping List
Yes, everything is from Trader Joe’s!
The ingredients don’t look as good on the boxes do they? But all your joint visitors will think this is the board of all boards.
What to Include:
- Manchego cheese
- An unexpected Cheddar cheese
- Triple Cream Brie Cheese
- Fig butter or other preserves (Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Butter is amazing!)
- Truffle marcona almonds (you will use half) (6 oz)
- A bag of dried apricots (you’ll use half or more – save the rest)
- 2 colors of grapes (get a bowl of mixed grapes)
- One shiny apple
- Candied Dried Orange Slices (5 oz) (these are GREAT, but you can also use fresh oranges)
- Spanish Meat Trio (6 oz)
- The new sage
- Fresh rosemary
- Stone ground wheat breads
- Pistachio Pomegranate Crisps
- Cheddar Cheese Sticks
- Pita Bite Crackers
There is more goat cheese in the picture that we decided not to use, but you can mix and match with any cheese like blue cheese or herbed or cranberry goat cheese.
Board Shopping Tips
Try to choose three different styles and flavors of cheese for variety.
You can also consider adding small dishes with hummus or more nutritious options like sea artichokes or olives.
A small bowl of chocolate covered nuts or a few dark chocolates are also a nice touch!
You won’t use ALL the crackers, nuts or fruit, on the board, but you can also keep a stash aside to refill if needed.
How to Assemble Your Thanksgiving Charcuterie Board
Watch a how-to video on YouTube here!
Gather Your Goods, Prepare Fruits, Unbox Crackers
Cut and arrange on one board and assemble on a serving board. That way the serving board stays nice and tidy.
So you will need two cutting boards, cheese knives, and a few plates to prepare the ingredients for the corral.
Prepare the cheese
Keep the brie whole and cube the cheddar.
How to cut triangular cheese for charcuterie
Turn the manchego on its side and cut into triangles. Then stack them vertically. Once you have a tower, you can open its side to appear as zig zags on the board.
How to Wrap Meat
- Roll the oval meat into a cigar
- Fold the round meat into “flowers”
The meeting
Once everything is opened, washed, cut, you can start assembling!
Step 1: Start by gluing the board with cheese.
Step 2: Add the meat as the river turns around the cheese, turning the “smoked” side up.
Step 3: Add fruit
Stand the grapes as high as possible so that the stem is high in the air.
Place piles of dried fruit around.
Garnish the corners with orange slices (I think these are great!) and cut apples to display on the fan.
Step 4: Add crackers in groups and piles, like fans, dominoes and piles.
Notice how the bread sticks are separated and stand up as much as possible.
Step 5: Filling the remaining empty spaces with nuts.
Step 6: Spread on the brie and pour over the preserves.
Step 7: Add fresh herbs to the remaining spaces.
Watch it magically build:
Charcuterie board tips
Board Size
If you don’t have a big enough board, you can join two boards or use a plate. Since you will be doing a lot of cutting on your prep board, the serving board will show up a lot.
Transport to the party
If you need to move the board, you can place the rosemary vertically or use knives to keep the plastic wrap from tearing the board.
I also like to put the whole board inside a large cased tray so it doesn’t shift. A large shallow box would work too.
Use Bowls For Dips
If you’d like to add a dip like hummus, use a small bowl and top it with cheese.
Add something sweet
Every charcuterie board needs a little chocolate!
Some ideas for party favors and charcuterie:
Other Themed Charcuterie Board Ideas:
-
-
Christmas Charcuterie Board
-
-
Picnic Charcuterie Board
Special thanks to my gal Della for sharing her creative process with us!
Have a great holiday season!
Better yet, serve it up with delicious drinks: Simple Thanksgiving Cocktails or 10 Free Cocktails.
You may also like: Fall Salads for Thanksgiving or How to Have a Mindful Holiday.
