Reflections: Charcuterie Boards are Creative Strategy
Growing up, my mom threw the best dinner parties. Even with her grueling job, she would spend Thursday and Friday nights preparing for her friends to gather on Saturday. Painstakingly setting the table days in advance so that it was taken off the to do list. Marinating meats overnight so they were their most tender. Running errands early on Saturday to get the pick of the market.
I can’t remember the details of each party decades later, but I remember the low candle light, centerpiece floral arrangements centering the table, the clink of glasses, the belly laughs from my parents friends.
Hosting lives deep within me.
-
When dear friends began planning winter celebrations, the hostess inside me popped out.
How can I help? (read: please let me join the fun)
Snacks
They both asked for charcuterie boards, the perfect vehicle for elevated party snacks. Variation for all dietary needs, visually interesting, low cleanup.
The first event was for an annual New Year’s bash. The centerpiece? A martini fountain! How much fun to build snacks around that. The night was a roading success.
The second event was hosted at Rhythms studio for their big re-opening. Tenley is the sweetest soul and being a part of her big day was an honor! With her estimated headcount, budget, and blessing secured I marched off to Costco.
I made myself a vision and a plan:
Variation in texture, size, color, taste.
Each board should speak to the time of year: winter holiday evergreens and sparkle, deep hues around valentines.
Prep at home, assemble at the venue around core anchors on the table.
Fill in the gaps on the table with nuts, greenery.
Everything started out great. I stuck to budgets at the grocery. I came up with a clever way to transport the mise en place efficiently without crushing anything. I got to the venues on time.
First came the spill. Glass jars slipped from my car (granted they were sitting on top of a slanted slick table in the trunk) and shattered onto the concrete. We can figure this out. I shifted the plan from jars to put more of the board directly on the table.
I set my anchor points- four rounds of goat cheese spread equally across the table. From there, I started to shape the other snacks in circles, zig-zags, off-kilter stacks around them. The method to the madness is - give it a try.
About a quarter of the way through, the doubt creeped in. Would there be enough food? Would the entire table fill up?
I zoned in for the next hour- carefully spreading meats and cheeses, fruits and nuts so that they were accessible from both ends, had enough in each area so that one did not disappear too quickly, and created visual intruige.
I finished the table with greenery and tea lights. Deep dark magnolia leaves, textured rosemary branches, supple sage. Candles were lit just as the first guest arrived.
The board was gone just as guests started to leave.
The plan worked. The vision, plan, and keep-going attitude resulted in a bountiful spread that awed guests.
-
Although different from my mom’s dinner parties of my childhood, the creativity, execution and joy of preparing a show-stopping event backed by lush greenery, low light, and a lot of intention lives on.
Charcuterie spread at Rhythms reopening party.