How to Make a Beautiful Spring Brunch Charcuterie Board
If you love hosting friends and family for brunch, but don’t want to be tied to the kitchen, a brunch charcuterie board is one of my favourite ways to make the occasion feel special without a lot of work. It’s a casual, relaxed and very flexible way to let everyone serve themselves. Exactly the kind of entertaining that is both practical and thoughtful….and pretty too! This helpful guide will help you build the best board for any occasion.
Whether it’s a casual weekend get together, Easter brunch, or a Mother’s Day celebration, just like my Game Day Snack Board, this is the kind of spread that comes together easily and your guests will love!
Why You’ll Love A Brunch Board
- it requires very little cooking (or no cooking at all!)
- you can prepare a lot of it ahead of time
- it uses simple, everyday ingredients
- it works for so many occasions (think wedding showers, baby showers, holidays, lazy weekends)
What to Include on a Brunch Charcuterie Board
You don’t need a long list of ingredients to make this work. Just choose a few items from each category and build from there. A mix of sweet and savory options are all that is needed.
Breads
Croissants, bagels, mini waffles, cinnamon rolls, or even simple toast cut into pieces work well.
Protein Options
Cooked bacon, sausage, sliced ham, salami, prosciutto, or smoked salmon are all easy options.
Cheeses
A mix of something soft like brie or cream cheese, and something firmer like cheddar or gouda.
Fresh Fruit
Berries, grapes, and citrus slices add freshness and a bit of colour. Use a variety of fruits in season or what you have on hand.
Spreads & Toppings
Jam, honey, butter, and nut butters are simple additions that go a long way.
Extras
If you’d like to add a little more, pastries, muffins, scones, yogurt, granola, or boiled eggs fit in nicely. For Easter I like to add a few chocolate mini eggs or other Easter chocolates, and Mother’s Day always finds macarons and edible flowers on my boards.
What You’ll need to Build a Brunch Board
Don’t make it complicated. It’s very likely you already have everything you need on hand.
the board itself
Any large surface will work:
- a wooden cutting board
- a serving tray
- a shallow wicker basket
- a marble slab
- a rimmed cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or paper doily
Be sure to choose something that is large enough to hold everything, but don’t feel you have to fill every inch. I like to allow some things to spill over the edges a bit.
small bowls and ramekins
To keep things tidy and easy to serve. Nothing fancy, just a few small vessels to hold things like:
- jams and jellies
- honey
- granola
- yogurt
I’ve used recycled glass yogurt jars, jam jars and small cereal bowls just to name a few!
serving utensils
Mix and match a few pieces to making serving easy peasy:
- small spoons
- honey dipper
- cheese spreader
- small forks or tongs for picking things up easily
Napkins and plates
Recyclable paper plates and napkins make things quick and easy, but for an extra special touch use real plates and cloth napkins.
Quip Tip – Have everything ready before you begin. Knowing which board, bowls and utensils you are using makes it easy for planning the placement of all the goodies and prevents last minute runs to buy what you’re missing!
How to Build the Board
Be sure to check out the full printable instructions below!
There’s no right or wrong way to arrange a charcuterie board, but this simple method I have followed for years makes it easy.
- Start by placing the bowls or cups to the board, and fill them with jams, nuts, granola or other elements that will need to be contained. If including yogurt on the board, leave this bowl empty just until ready to serve.
- Add larger items such as waffles, bagels, croissants and no-yeast mini cinnamon rolls.
- Add protein options such as prosciutto, salami and ham. Simply arrange them in bunches around the board.
- Fill in with addition fruits such as grapes, sweet pastries like these easy chocolate croissants, cheddar and cream cheese. Garnish with fresh herbs and additional fruit.
Don’t over-think it. A mix of textures and a bit of variety is all you need.
A Simple Version (When You’re Short on Time)
If you don’t have much time, it’s easy to pull together a pretty board with just a few ingredients you may already have on hand.
- bagels
- cream cheese – either whipped or a block
- a couple of fresh fruit options
- bacon or ham
- jam
More than enough for a delicious addition to the brunch table.
Make Ahead Tips
One of the things I love about charcuterie boards is that it is easy to prep a lot of things ahead of time.
- wash, dry and cut fruit the day before, store in airtight containers in the refrigerator
- cook any bacon, sausage early in the day and just reheat before placing on the board, hard boiled eggs can also be cooked the day before
- if you opt to make your own cinnamon buns or pastries, bake these a day or two in advance
- lay out the board and any containers you will need the night before
What to Serve With It
Keep it simple with just coffee, tea and orange juice. For extra special occasions serve mimosas or a light sangria. Both are easily made non-alcoholic!
A Few Final Tips
Don’t make it complicated. It’s not about making it perfect, and just a few simple, good food choices can come together on a beautiful brunch board. One that shows you have taken the time to make something special that everyone will be eager to gather around and enjoy.
After all, isn’t that what easy entertaining is all about!
How to Make A Brunch Charcuterie Board
Equipment
- 1 wood board or serving tray
- spoons, knives and spreaders for serving
- honey dripper if serving honey
Ingredients
Feel to use these ingredients exactly or customize to your liking!
- 4 bagels, halved
- 8 mini Belgian waffles
- 8 mini no-yeast cinnamon rolls or store bought
- 4 mini cheese croissants
- 4 homemade chocolate croissants or store bought
- 125 gram block cream cheese
- old cheddar cheese, sliced
- 2 cups plain greek yogurt
- 1 cup granola
- ½ cup cherry jam
- 1 small bunch green grapes
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
- 1 large orange, sliced into triangles
- fresh strawberries
- 8 each of salami, prosciutto and Black Forest ham
- honey
Instructions
- Begin by arranging bowls that will hold jam, honey, granola and yogurt.
- Arrange waffles, bagels, croissants and cinnamon rolls. Fill jam, honey and granola bowls. Begin to arrange smaller fruit pieces to fill in.
- Arrange meats on the board. Tucking it between oranges and croissants, near the bagels and some at the top of the board.
- Finally, add yogurt to the bowl, arrange small bunch of grapes along the top edge of the board, fill in large gap beside waffles with chocolate croissants. Add cream cheese between honey and granola. Fill in any other small gaps with fruit. Garnish with fresh herbs such as dill, rosemary or parsley.
- Place honey dripper into the honey bowl, spoons into granola and jam, and cheese spreader into the cream cheese. Place tongs or small forks on the board to serve breads and pastries.
