Charcuterie for a Crowd

I've made some fun charcuterie boards to share this month.  They've been the perfect food item to bring to a tailgate, carry in dinner and meal to share with friends.  You know my family has been on a charcuterie kick this year so it's fun to share these ideas with you.  The excitement has yet to wear off and my family still get super excited to see a charcuterie board on the menu for the week.

// 1 // Tailgate Charcuterie
I found this darling Indiana shaped wooden cutting board at Homegoods for just $13 recently.  It's the perfect size and perfect for all the game day gatherings we'll have this Fall.   

Tip: Wooden cutting boards are much cheaper at places like Aldi, TJ Maxx, Marshalls and Homegoods.  I've never paid more than $20 for a board at those stores.  You'll save yourself lots of money if you buy them there instead of department stores, online and kitchen stores.

I just did a small handful of each ingredient and we had the perfect lunch.  I'd highly recommend investing in some cute napkins to match your team and football appetizers plates to use from year to year.  This set of plates came from a local grocery store named Schnucks a few years ago.  We're also still loving adding spicy mustard to our trays for dipping.  I put the link to those little dipping cups in this Amazon post.  

// 2 // Warm Dinner Rolls
I love a good roll and these Sister Schubert Parker House Style Rolls were perfect for this board.  They're mini and they come in a circle shaped pan.  They bake really quickly.  You can just pop them in the oven while you're assembling your board.  Then brush butter on top and they're ready to be pulled apart.  My family really enjoyed the addition of something warm and comforting to our dinner board.  I've given away pans of these rolls at dinner time as well.

// 3 // Carry in Charcuterie Boards
I've mentioned before that I'm the president of our local moms group this year.  I am loving the responsibility and the event planning that has come along with it.  We have monthly meetings that I get to plan the dinner, guest speaker and then the board runs a meeting.  It's a really fun gathering. 

I have talked about charcuterie boards with the group several times so I figured it was a fun dinner idea for them.  I took care of the meats, a few cheeses and brought my boards to share.  I had all the moms sign up to bring various crackers, dips, cheeses, fruits, veggies and desserts.  It came together really well.  I added quick handwritten labels to the cheeses and meats and then everyone just found a spot for their ingredients when they arrived.  I got lots of compliments on this meal and several people messaged or texted me later to say that they'd replicated this meal for their own families.  Win!

 // 4 // Charcuterie To Go
It's been my goal to share food with friends this year and we did have leftovers from the meeting above.  They were the perfect leftovers because they had never been put out for people to touch.  I kept a close eye on the boards and refilled as needed making sure to not refill too much.  The boards were pretty much eaten clean and I had perfectly packaged leftovers to share.

Insert me texting a friend - "When can I bring you dinner this week??"  We settled on a date and I delivered this yummy meal to them.  I had already spent time chopping and prepping so it was fun to bless another family with this meal.

Tip: Don't over fill your boards.  Put a little bit of everything out and then refill as needed.  That way food won't go to waste.  You'll be able to save the leftovers to eat or share another day.

I'm working on some fun Fall Charcuterie board ideas to share with you in October.  Stay tuned for apples, pumpkins and Halloween themed boards soon.