3 Secrets to Creating a Simple Cheese Board

Want to make a simple cheese board but aren’t sure where to begin? These three secrets will help you easily create a cheese board that everyone at your party will obsess over.

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Cheese boards are everywhere, as are charcuterie and tapas boards. And as they should be. They are a perfect addition to just about any event buffet. (Bonus: They are make excellent dinners – my daughters can attest!)

When you scroll through Pinterest looking at all of the beautifully styled cheese boards, it’s easy to begin to feel shy about attempting your own. How do they do it!?

The truth is there are really only three key things you need to do to make a cheese board just like the ones you pin. It’s actually easier than you may think! With a little pre-planning and a bit of time putting it together, you can make a pin-worthy cheese board for your next party.

I’ll share with you the three secrets I have learned to style simple cheese boards. And I’ll also provide links to my favorite resources to save you time tracking down supplies.

In this post, I’ll share with you the three secrets I have learned to style simple cheese boards. And I’ll also provide links to my favorite resources to save you time tracking down supplies.

This post is all about how to create a show stopping simple cheese board everyone will rave about.

Secret 1: Plan Ahead and Gather

I get it. We all have a million and one things on our to-do lists and little time for anything, let alone thinking in depth about a cheese board of all things!

But making a pretty cheese board does require some planning. Trust me. A little effort at this stage will save you tons of headaches later on.

So, what exactly do you need to plan? Glad you asked!

You need to decide on a theme, make a list of everything you need, and then gather your supplies. Let’s dig into each of these tasks.

Decide on a Cheese Board Theme

The easiest way to decide on a theme is to tie it in with whatever event or holiday the cheese board will be served at. Then, think about how you can incorporate that theme into the cheese board.

Need some examples?

Let’s say you’re serving this cheese board at a Halloween party. So, naturally, your cheese board’s theme will be Halloween. You could incorporate that theme by using a dark wood or slate board, choosing ingredients that are rustic like blue cheese and olives, decorating with a mini pumpkin, adding candy eyeballs on a few of the items on the board, and garnishing with a licorice string to look like spooky spider webs.

As another example, let’s say you’re serving the cheese board at a baptism party, and the party colors are blue, pink, and gold. You could incorporate the theme by using a light marble board, choosing fresh ingredients such as goat cheese rolled in dill and radishes, adding a small gold bowl filled with honey, and garnishing with fresh herbs, raspberries, and blueberries.

It doesn’t have to be super themy – just a nod to the overall event.

Enough about that – let’s move on, shall we?

Make a List of Cheese Board Ingredients

I know not everyone is a list maker, but trust me on this; lists are your best friend when it comes to planning parties! Cheese boards included.

By making a list, you can identify what you have already and what needs to be ordered.

Your list should include both food and non-food items. As a starting point, these are the typical things on a simple cheese board shopping list.

Non-food items:

Board
Accent dishes (like small bowls or mini shallow plates)
Cheese knives
Small spoons or forks
Napkins
Plates

Food items:

Three types of cheeses (my rule of thumb is one mild soft like brie, one semi-hard crowd pleaser like gouda, and one wild card like a spicy pepper jack)
Two types of meat (summer sausage and prosciutto are usually my go-tos)
Two types of crackers (one round and one not round in two different color tones (so maybe one water cracker and one multigrain))
One fresh fruit (grapes are an easy option)
One dried fruit (dried apricots are my favorite)
One sauce (honey or jam)
Olives
Nuts
Garnish

Obviously, the quantity of the food will depend on the size of the party you’re having and how many other food options are being served. There’s no easy formula for this since there are so many variables. I’d say a good guide is to buy enough for each person to have three of each item on the tray.

A good guide is to buy enough for each person to have three of each item on the tray.

Gather

Now that you have your list, it’s time to identify what you have and what needs to be ordered.

I would actually recommend pulling out the non-food items and looking at them together. Maybe what you thought you had you can’t find or doesn’t work together like you thought it would. This will also save you from having to scrounge around looking for things the day of the party when you already have a million things to handle.

Then, as the party approaches, purchase your food ingredients. When I have my act together, I like to group everything I need in the refrigerator and pantry so it’s easy to quickly grab all of it when it’s time to assemble the cheese board.

Secret 2: Variation, Repetition, Height

It’s party day! You’re ready to build your cheese board. This is really fun once you get the hang of it.

Expect it to take a little longer than you think it will. I wouldn’t throw this together 10 minutes before guests are expected to arrive. Give yourself time so you’re not feeling rushed.

Start by getting out all of your items. Wash your board and utensils, and prep your fresh fruits and vegetables.

You have all of this stuff out on your counter. Now what!? Don’t panic. Let’s take this step-by-step. The idea is to start with the big items first and then begin to fill in with smaller things.

The very first thing you should put on your board are your small dishes. Place them in a diagonal (if two) or triangle (if three) on your board.

If you’re using a food decoration (like the pumpkin mentioned in the theme examples) place this now too.

Then place your cheeses in the same manner – in a triangle shape.

Add the other ingredients, each in at least two places on the board for variety.

When you’re building your board, you want to think about variation, repetition, and height. These visual cues will make a HUGE impact to the overall effect of your finished cheese board.

When you’re building your board, you want to think about variation, repetition, and height. These visual cues will make a HUGE impact to the overall effect of your finished cheese board.

Variation: Try to place things on the board in different ways. For example, turn some crackers on their side and lean them against a small dish, and other crackers fanned in a corner.

Repetition: Each ingredient should appear on the board at least twice (with the exception of the sauces and cheese). Try to space them out so they are on opposite sides of the board, but not in perfect symmetry.

Height: As you build your board, think about ways you can add some height so not every ingredient is on the same plane. The small dishes are already helping with this, but maybe there are a few things you can stack to add additional visual interest.

Secret 3: Add Finishing Touches

When you think you are finished building your cheeseboard, take a step back and give it a critical eye. Is there anything that could be added or changed to enhance it?

One thing I find myself needing to add almost always are more fillers to make the board appear full. Fillers are things like nuts and dried fruit. You can easily scatter more in empty spaces on your board to close any gaps.

If you haven’t added your garnish yet, this is the time to do it. Just like with the other ingredients, garnish should be placed on opposite sides of the board, but not in perfect symmetry to create visual interest.

The last step is to add your utensils to the board – cheese knives, spoons in the sauce, small forks for olives, etc.

And that’s it! You now have the three secrets to creating a beautiful cheese board for any party, holiday, or celebration. By planning ahead, building intentionally using variation, repetition, and height, and adding filler and garnishes at the end, you should be able to create a show stopping cheese board.

Shop the Post

If you’re looking for some resources for where to buy things to make a cheese board, I’ve included links to some of my favorites.

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Please leave a comment and let me know if you try these secrets. I’d love to know how your cheese board turned out!