Christmas Dessert Charcuterie Board
Christmas Dessert Charcuterie Board
If you are looking for a Christmas dessert to impress your guests then this charcuterie board is it! Stunning and delicious, this board is full of candy, chocolate, cookies, and fruit for the holiday season!
Christmas desserts are some of my very favorite things to make for get-togethers. Try out my favorite cookies, cake, and this yummy cinnamon roll wreath!
Christmas Dessert Charcuterie
Charcuterie (pronounced shar-koo-tuh-ree) is such a fun word to say but even better than that, it is so much fun to make! This Christmas charcuterie board is absolutely perfect for any party or get-together this season. It’s large enough to feed a crowd yet you can put enough things on it that there is something for everyone. It’s a great Christmas dessert. Plus, it only takes a few minutes to put together and when you’re done it looks like a million bucks!
If you have been intimidated by charcuterie boards before then don’t be! I will walk you through all of the steps on how to buy the right stuff and how to place it all on the board. I love them so much because you can really change every single thing up to make this your own. Add in or take things out that fit your crowd! That’s the beauty of these boards. Once you start making them you will never stop. In fact, check out this Christmas Wreath Charcuterie and this Simple Charcuterie Board for a couple more ideas to try out!
First Comes the Fruit!
When you are picking out fruit for a charcuterie board, I like to look for fruit that stands out in color. Especially if I can get some colors that are seasonal! It really makes them pop and stand out on the board. I only used a couple of fruits for this dessert board.
- Strawberries
- Pomegranate
I love to put fruit on a charcuterie board because it adds a fresh taste to go with all of the cookies and candy. If you want to add more fruit to yours then try using some grapes, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, orange slices, or even some sugared cranberries!
Pastries for a Christmas Dessert Charcuterie
The pastries are really a large part of this charcuterie. Since it is for dessert, you can use as many as you want. The more the better! Try to pick out things that are different in texture and shape so that they really stand out on the board. Most of my ingredients are from Trader Joes but feel free to change this up to fit your needs!
- Orange cranberry scones
- Molasses cookies
- Large dark chocolate candy cane pretzels
- Waffle cookies
- Biscotti cookies
- Baton wafer cookies
- Chocolate covered peppermint cookies
- Christmas tree cookies
- Mini present brownies
- Gingerbread men
Most of these pastries are store-bought but if you really want to take this charcuterie board to the next level you could add in these Madeleines, these Alfajores, or these delicious Butter Cookies. The pastries really take up a lot of the boards so put your star ingredients on with these!
Don’t Forget the Sweets!
The candy that I put on this board really finishes it off… I mean, who can have a dessert board without some Christmas candy! I used both wrapped and unwrapped candy, This adds some visual texture and some more color to the board which keeps it interesting. Here is a list of the sweets that I used:
- Mint chocolate squares
- White chocolate peppermint kisses
- Wrapped chocolate balls
- Chocolate orange
- Mini peppermint meringue
- White chocolate peppermint bark
- Red chocolate covered cherries
- Wrapped Carmels
- Chocolate nut clusters
- Homemade chocolate sauce
Again, switch these up to be what you like! I really like to look for candy and sweets that are already made for the holiday so when you are looking for them, check out the seasonal aisle in your grocery store. Then they are all right in one place for you! A few more ideas to go on this board would be some chocolate whoppers, candied nuts, m&m’s, or this toffee.
Let’s Put it All Together!
This is the fun part! Now that you have all of your ingredients, it’s time to put this Christmas dessert charcuterie board together. It’s super easy and you will wonder why you haven’t been making one of these for every occasion!
- Start with the largest items: On a large platter or cutting board, lay down the largest items first. I started with setting a bowl down for the chocolate syrup, then pomegranate, orange cranberry scones, molasses cookies, waffle cookies, Christmas tree cookies, brownie presents, and the chocolate orange.
- Add in some fruit and the rest of the baked goods: Make a couple clusters of the items spaced across the board. Then fill in the open space with the next largest items. I added chocolate covered pretzels, strawberries, white chocolate peppermint bark, nut clusters, and mint chocolate squares.
- Fill in with the remaining ingredients: Use the rest of the items to fill in the empty spaces until the board is completely covered. Pour the chocolate sauce into the bowl for dipping the fruit. Serve in 1-2 hours.
Charcuterie Board Tips
Putting this Christmas dessert charcuterie board together may look intense but it’s so simple and easy. Here are a few tips that will help it turn out perfectly.
- Use the right size board: The key to making this look just right is not using a board that is too big. You don’t want to see the board at all so if you use one that’s too big and you can’t fill it all then it won’t look right. Try using a smaller board first to make sure that it all works. If you need to go bigger from there then you can!
- Make it your own! If you have people at your party that you know like certain foods, add them in! That’s the great part about making these boards. You can add or take away whatever works for you. I have even made ones for my kids before that are simple with crackers, veggies and fruit snacks for an after school snack. These are so much fun! Get creative, you will want to make these for everything!
- Dips: A great way to add a little bit more to your board is to bring in a couple more little bowls of dips. Try out this Homemade Caramel Sauce or this S’mores Dip!
Christmas Dessert Charcuterie Board
Ingredients
Fruit:
- Pomegranate split into fourths
- Strawberries
Pastries:
- Orange cranberry scones
- Molasses cookies
- Large dark chocolate candy cane pretzels
- Waffle cookies
- Biscotti cookies
- Baton wafer cookies
- Chocolate covered peppermint cookies
- Christmas tree cookies
- Mini present brownies
- Gingerbread men
Candy:
- Mint chocolate squares
- White chocolate peppermint kisses
- Wrapped chocolate balls
- Chocolate orange
- Mini peppermint meringue
- White chocolate peppermint bark
- Red chocolate covered cherries
- Wrapped Caramels
- Chocolate nut clusters
- Homemade chocolate sauce
Instructions
-
On a large platter or cutting board, lay down the largest items first. I started with setting a bowl down for the chocolate syrup, then pomegranate, orange cranberry scones, molasses cookies, waffle cookies, Christmas tree cookies, brownie presents, and the chocolate orange.
-
Make a couple of clusters of the items spaced across the board. Then fill in the open space with the next largest items. I added chocolate-covered pretzels, strawberries, white chocolate peppermint bark, nut clusters, and mint chocolate squares.
-
Use the rest of the items to fill in the empty spaces until the board is completely covered. Pour the chocolate sauce into the bowl for dipping the fruit. Serve in 1-2 hours.