Holiday Charcuterie Boards

I already liked the look of a well-done charcuterie board but I recently enjoyed two library books on creating artful charcuterie displays (Boards & Spreads and Boards, Platters & More) and kinda fell in love with the idea of birthday and holiday charcuterie spreads. 

Charcuterie actually means a platter of meats as well but we'll be focusing on plant-based offerings.

Last Christmas I made my first attempt but I was at someone else's house so I had limited dish + food options. 

This was just for my kids and I ran out of room so just had carrots in the package beside it. Spinach applesauce from Target // sliced apples // the Christmas cookies we had baked // cherry tomatoes // guacamole // raspberries // trail mix // hummus // Himalayan Gold popcorn // Simple Mills pita crackers // cucumber slices 

We normally do pizza as our Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners but I wanted to start making these platters for the lunch. They turned out to be a huge hit and now my family wants these fun platters for every holiday, plus they're open to dropping pizza and just focusing on this! 

Sweet platter (left)- Apples with "caramel" (date) dip from Life Changing Foods // dried apricots // oat milk chocolate squares // sweet potato rounds with marshmallows

Savory platter (right)- Potato skins // carrots + Bell pepper + celery // Mary's crackers with Plant Perks herbed cashew spread

Everyone is already looking forward to the Christmas and New Year platters but most of my cookbooks are packed away in storage so I have been looking for ideas this week. 

I've included links but these are all way cheaper in person so this is more for reference. 

- Oat flatbread (I add in a clove of garlic and different seasonings) sliced into triangles or strips, kind of like pita 

- Pinwheels using that oat flatbread recipe 

- Hummus (Cedars fat + oil free is hard to find but I always like it better than my homemade version. I made a pumpkin dessert hummus this fall that was a big hit, though) 

- Pesto  

- Raw veggies... Carrots, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, celery, Bell pepper slices  

- Mary's Gone Crackers (we like all of the original and super seed varieties)

-  Plant Perks cashew cream spread 

- pickles 

- olives 

- Stuffed mushrooms... Maybe this cauliflower puree or this lentil marinara, in Cremini mushrooms? 

- pear and apple slices with date-based "caramel" dip as kind of a caramel dip 

- roasted chickpeas and/or nuts 

- twice-baked potatoes or the above potato skins

- pumpkin bread or cinnamon raisin bread 

- Dried apple chips, figs, and/or apricots 

- French Macarons?! We all love these but they're so expensive and so hard to find both certfied gluten free and vegan. We basically never have these so it would be a fun treat if I can find some! 

- Sweet potato slices topped with almond butter, cinnamon, and hemp hearts or melted marshmallows and pecans? 

- The HEB grocery store in Texas had this Spiced Autumn Bisque that sounds so good and seems like it'd be easy to healthify! Or a savory butternut squash soup with sourdough slices? 

- tortilla chips with salsa, guacamole, bean dip? 

- mini muffins 

- stuffed peppers, tomatoes, or jalapenos 

- Mini sandwiches 

📚 For the record, I would be using these cookbooks if I had them out: Babycakes // The Colorful Family Table // Eat Better, Live Better, Feel Better // Gluten Free, Vegan Cooking for the Instant Pot // Plant Based Air Fryer Cookbook // Practical Paleo (for the veggie side dishes and desserts!)