Planning a Cheese Board

The meal has almost come to an end. The main course is finished, the dessert coffee and grappa have yet to be served. Maybe a nice savory flavor would be appropriate just before the arrival of the sweet flavors. Behold the French and Italian tradition of a cheese course, the arrival of the cheeseboard or in deluxe form, the cheese cart in a fine dining establishment. Intense savory odors assault the senses as one surveys the possibilities. Just as for any other part of the meal, when planning the cheese board you will learn that the cheese course requires some planning.

*In this series, you will learn basic cooking techniques and gain the confidence to cook a delicious and healthy meal using what is on hand and without a recipe.

planning the cheese board

Just as for any other part of the meal, the cheese course requires some planning as there are many different kinds of cheeses and various approaches to creating an interesting platter. First is to remember that cheese is not served on a plate with knife and fork. Suggestions for serving include various types of crackers or crisps, or cut fruit (particularly apple or pear). Toasts made from various kinds of bread. Slices of toasted ciabatta (from Italian, “slipper”) or baguette work particularly well, as do pumpernickel and rye breads. Grape clusters make the cheese board look festive, and don’t forget to include some real balsamic vinegar. You will be amazed at how much a drop of balsamico contributes to a slice of cheese. Finally, put a small ramekin of preserves or chutney on the plate.

It is easiest to cut cheese with a true cheese knife due to the open spaces that help to prevent the cheese from sticking to the knife. If you are a purist you will use different knives for the different cheeses so there is no cross-mingling of flavors to impair the experience.

Use freshly bought cheeses. Cheeses stored in the refrigerator will, over time, become moldy, pick up funky flavors and even begin to dry out. So if you are only having four people at the dinner table buy small wedges, not huge pieces. You can buy more fresh cheese later for another meal. For six or eight guests, you can either increase the selections but keep the servings small, or you limit the selection to maybe four cheeses and increase the size of the wedges. In any event visit a good cheese monger—and do not make a cheese board with shrink-wrapped or pre-cut processed cheeses.

The main point though is that each cheese will have different flavors and so it is important to present cheeses that make an interesting tasting experience. One could say this is comparable to going to a wine tasting. There are “families” of cheeses. Blue cheeses make up a large family, cheddars make up a family, there are a huge selection of triple-cream cheeses, wide variations in the firmer “Swiss style” cheeses and of course a huge selection of goat cheeses. One approach would be to offer a cheese from each of the family of cheeses. So a nice cheese course or cheese board would include a slice of cheddar, and slice of gorgonzla or other blue, a slice of a swiss style, and a small round of triple-cream and a slice of goat. That selection will provide a wide variety of taste experiences.

 

Selecting your cheeses

If your guests at dinner have are “cheese-savvy” and have experienced the different families of cheeses you could instead choose one family of cheeses and one style of cheese to present in various forms. For example, a tasting of blue cheeses could include a selection chosen from Gorgonzola dolce (sweeter and softer), an aged Gorgonzola (saltier, more firm), both Italian, a Roquefort (French), a Stilton (English), a Bavarian blue (German), a Danish blue, or even a triple-cream blue such as Cambozola, and don’t forget to include a California blue from one of the Marin, Sonoma and Humboldt producers.

If you wish to make a cheese board using firm cheeses, you could select from Emmentaler (Swiss), Comte (French), fresh Gouda or smoked Gouda (Dutch), Gruyere (Swiss) Jarlsberg (Norwegian), Manchego (Spanish) and Fontina (Italian).

The family of triple-cream cheeses present the same opportunity for a selection of flavors. Obviously the triple-creams that first come to mind are Camembert and Brie. But you could try St. Andre, St. Angel, Époisse, Delice de Bourgogne (cream added to milk)—all French. If you wish Italian, try La Tur. Cambozola is a cross-over as it fits both in the blue and the triple-cream categories.

Ireland and England make a wide variety of cheddars so a you could serve a complete Cheddar board. Goat cheeses range from triple-cream to slicing pyramids, to ash-dipped to grape-leaf-wrapped. There are a wide variety of sheep cheeses as well, a large variety of flavored or “dessert” cheeses (often infused with fruit brandies) and also strongly-flavored cheeses such as Limburger.

Last variations: you could try to make sure your cheese board has a selection of cheeses from different animals (sheep, goat and cow, or blends using milk from more than one type of animal); or you could prepare a cheese board by regions (Italian cheeses only, French cheeses only, California cheeses only); or if you are really into solving Rubik’s Cubes try to make a cheese board with cheeses from different animals and from different regions. For example, Gorgonzola cow’s milk from Italy; Manchego sheep’s milk from Spain; triple-cream goat milk cheese (brie) from France. As you can see the variations and combinations are endless, as will be the interest level.

Go visit a reputable cheese monger. Absent the restrictions of COVID they will allow you to taste and you can make your selection. If there are 50 cheeses carried by your cheese monger, the various combinations you could make are in the millions (50 x 49 x 48 x 47 = more than 5,000,000!). So just decide on your approach, select some cheeses, and enjoy, have fun, and learn!

And remember, take the cheeses out of the refrigerator and make the cheese board at least an hour before serving. Cheeses are best enjoyed at room temperature (55 F to 72F).

 

Contributor: Ron Fenolio, CEO Veedercrest Estates and Chair – Family Winemakers of California | © 2021 Ronald L. Fenolio

Search Food and Wine

Share with friends