Christmas Charcuterie Board or CharcuterWREATH

This 30 minute Christmas charcuterie board or charcuterWREATH, is the perfect cheeseboard for holiday gatherings! With fresh fruit, meats & cheeses and even sweets, there is something for everyone to enjoy.

This holiday season, get out of your traditional charcuterie board or gluten-free charcuterie board making and make this fun charcuterWREATH! It is both beautiful in presentation but full of all the great things you want in an appetizer spread.

Keep it small with an individual charcuterie boxes or go BIG and make a holiday grazing table for a crowd! Or, mix it up and make our adorable charcuterie cones that you can carry around with you at a party.

Charcuterie boards are my go to for any gathering or party. I helped my sister do about 20 ft worth of charcuterie table for her Boho wedding and it was so much fun!

One of my favorite boards was when we made a sugar cookie dessert charcuterie board. I even do holiday ones like this Valentines charcuterie board, Thanksgiving charcuterie board, Mexican charcuterie board, and our Halloween charcuterie board. A small charcuterie board or Super Bowl charcuterie board are also so fun!

So I like to keep as many things needed for any making them on hand. From honey, jams and cured meats (preferably made into our charcuterie rose) to dried fruit and nuts.

I like to save the grocery store trip for day of or day before making. That's usually when I pick up fresh rosemary, seasonal fruit and cheeses.

Our Christmas charcuterie wreath is one of my favorite holiday appetizers because it's a great way to get kids and everyone really, excited about fruit, veggies, meat and cheese.

When it is served like this, everyone wants to try! It is one of our favorite appetizers for Christmas potluck.

While serving it is great, I think the fun part really is in making it. Somehow it makes me feel really creative as I cut, place, design and serve a pretty charcuterie.

What is Christmas charcuterie?

So what makes this different you ask? For the Christmas version of this board. I used lots of fresh green herbs as mock leaves in our edible wreath. I also chose red fruit like pomegranate and cranberries.

We shaped it into a wreath on the big wood board and added in some holiday jams and peppermint chocolates for festive flavor. Sliced oranges are a must as they always remind me of the holidays. Did you get one in your stocking too?

I even watched a video on how to make salami roses for a real POP! They were surprisingly easy and only took a few minutes to make.

I also save the extra pomegranates for our slow cooker ham and bean soup. And the extra cranberries for our cranberry mocktail and non-alcoholic Prosecco drink with cranberries and pomegranate.

As well as our cranberry Christmas crack, white chocolate and cranberry gluten-free French toast casserole, overnight muesli with cranberries and chestnuts and our gingerbread pancakes with sugared cranberries

What usually goes on a charcuterie board?

While traditional charcuterie boards only have meat, the ones most people make today usually consist of a few simple things...

• variety of cheese
• variety of cured meats
• olives, pickles, caperberries and/or artichoke hearts
• dips (cranberry jam, artichoke dip and pistachio cream are my favorites) and the sweet ones also go great on our pancake charcuterie board
• crackers or chips
• decorated sugar cookies are a fun option as well but not traditional
• fresh fruits (pears, cranberries and pomegranate)

What you need to make this Christmas cheese board

Think of your favorite snack food items and a color scheme for your board then make a list. They should be finger foods or you can use small bowls to hold things like olives which tend to leak juice on the board.

You can also use cookie cutter to shape items on to the board then gently remove the cookie cutter. If you don't want to do the charcuterie wreath, you could also do it in a tree shape. Here are the main things you need for this board.

• sliced meats, I used mine for making salami roses
• hard cheeses and soft cheese like Boursin
• sprigs of rosemary and other green herbs
• fig jam or another seasonal jam
• seasonal produce and fresh fruit like pomegranate seeds, oranges, persimmon and cranberries
• green olives and cucumbers
• nuts, crackers and anything else you like

How to make it...

Step 1: Get a board and place cups and little spreading knives where you would like them 

Step 2: Add some dips, sauce or berries in the little cups as well as things like pickles which are wet and can make a mess

Pro Tip: The cups are especially great for berries, olives and anything with “juices” so they don’t get your other board ingredients soggy

Step 3: Add cheeses around the board, I recommend at least three varieties

Step 4: Make salami roses and add those in as well

Step 5: Add the cured meats, crackers, fruits and veggies (I love adding fresh pomegranate to this board!)

Step 6: Finish by adding in the green herbs to make a "wreath" look

Other items to consider adding

Some other great items you could add would be cherry tomatoes, goat cheese logs and any dips or new recipes you want to feature. If you are wanting to go with a more sweet, dessert board then add some candy canes and decorated sugar cookies in theme with your board.

A great addition for a Christmas tree charcuterie board would be a cheese star at the top. OR you could go really rogue and become queen or king of the night with one of the most modern charcuteries, a charcuterie chalet! Have you seen them? They are so fun!

Why it's so great for holiday gatherings

These festive charcuterie boards really are amazing for holiday parties because you make it and forget about it. People enjoy grazing while you enjoy visiting.

For this same reason, I love it for Christmas Eve. No need to make a big meal since we know that will come the next day in the form of breakfast with our gluten-free cinnamon rolls and gluten-free breakfast casserole or with a big dinner.

How do you store leftovers?

It is best to put all items that need refrigeration such as cheeses, meats and dips and put them into containers. They can then be refrigerated until you want to enjoy them again. 

Crackers, fruits, cookies and non-refrigerated items can be placed in containers and bags and stored at room temperature.

Get our free charcuterie board shopping list printable HERE