Tips on creating the perfect cheese board for summer entertaining by Brent Delman
Tips and recommendations for the perfect cheese board from Brent Delman
Provide a balance of flavors – mild to sharp and a balance of textures – soft, semi-soft, semi-hard, and hard. 3 milk types – cow, goat and sheep, and a variety of colors. They should be arranged in order from the lightest and freshest to the ripest and most intense. Five cheese varieties is a good number.- Include savory extras, a couple of sweet accompaniments, and crackers.
- Include savories such as raw, salted or smoked nuts, marinated olives and bread sticks.
- Add sweets – fresh fruits like grapes, apples, berries and fresh figs. Dried fruit like apricots, and jams or honey. Recommendation The Cheese Guy Preserves.
- Take the cheese out of the refrigerator and let it sit on the counter for at least an hour to reach room temperature before serving. Let guests slice their cheeses, as cheeses that are pre-sliced can dry out.
- Make assorted shapes of artistic wedges, wheels, logs, or squares.
- The board should be arranged from mildest to strongest cheeses in a clockwise order.
- Label each cheese and have a separate knife for each variety.
- Use wood boards or slate or marble slabs to serve on. Knives- the long cheese knife with the forked tip is good, as well as a cheese plane for making nice thin slices.
- Accompany the cheeses with your favorite wine, beer, or sparkling fruit juices
- Some cheese recommendations:
- Soft, bloomy rind cheeses like Brie and Camembert. Creamy, buttery, mushroomy. The longer they age, the runnier and more delicious they become. Recommendation The Cheese Guy’s Brie
- Fresh young cheeses would be mozzarella, feta or queso fresco, which has higher moisture content, a softer texture and are usually quite mild.
- Fresh or aged goat, or sheep cheese. Fresh Chevre, with or without herbs. Cheeses made from goat’s milk tend to have a more barnyard and tangy taste than cow’s milk. Aged sheep’s milk cheeses like Manchego or Italian Pecorinos contain more fat and protein and tend to taste sweeter, saltier and gamy. Recommendation The Cheese Guy’s Goat Cheese
- Semi hard cheeses like cheddar; Monterey jack and Gouda are aged longer and have less moisture than soft and fresh cheeses. Recommendation The Cheese Guy Sharp Cheddar
- Aged, hard (cow’s milk) cheeses like Parmesan (Parmiggiano), Gouda and Gruyere. These cheeses become harder and more crumbly with age. They tend to be saltier and full flavored. Recommendation The Cheese Guy Asiago, Parmesan and Romano
- A blue veined cheese should be included in every cheese board. They tend to have more assertive flavors from the mold they are inoculated with, Penicillium Roquefort. Examples would be Stilton, Gorgonzola and Roquefort. Recommendation The Cheese Guy Blue Cheese
Provide a balance of flavors – mild to sharp and a balance of textures – soft, semi-soft, semi-hard, and hard. 3 milk types – cow, goat and sheep, and a variety of colors. They should be arranged in order from the lightest and freshest to the ripest and most intense. Five cheese varieties is a good number.
