The Easiest Christmas Tree Charcuterie Board
This is the EASIEST Christmas Tree Charcuterie Board! Make this simple and festive holiday charcuterie board for your upcoming holiday party.
I have to tell y’all, I was way before my time with this festive Christmas charcuterie board! The first photograph evidence of me making a tree-shaped charcuterie board was almost 15 years ago at a party.
And it was cute, but it was also proof that we get better at things the more we do them. 🙂 Like cheese boards!
This is WAY before I offered charcuterie as a service during the pandemic and taught folks how to make a good traditional charcuterie board here at Blackberry Babe!
This festive charcuterie board is perfect for holiday gatherings. I love to make it on Christmas Eve, which is usually a pretty casual gathering for us, full of wine, festive cocktails like this Pomegranate Negroni or an N/A option like this Iced Peppermint Mocha or my NA Christmas Punch.
I love serving this Christmas charcuterie board with a Mistletoe Margarita and a few other appetizers like these Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts and Candied Bacon Baked Brie!
To make this Christmas tree Charcuterie board extra special, replace one of the layers with a row of Divinity Candy or Christmas Cracker Candy squares.
But this is the perfect party platter for anytime during the holiday season! And the best part? Literally ANYONE can make this Christmas tree board! My 8-year-old son can make it without a lot of help.
Holiday Board Substitutions
This Christmas Tree Charcuterie Board is pretty forgiving! I’ve listed a few ingredient substitutions below:
- Use your favorite crackers, any shape will work!
- Instead of cherry tomatoes and sliced cucumbers, substitute vegetables like baby carrots, dried fruit (I like apricots), or seasonal fruits. I love using fresh fruits, especially colorful berries!
- Use whatever fresh herbs you have on hand instead of the fresh rosemary or thyme
- Instead of green grapes, use green olives
- You can absolutely use your favorite meats instead of salami. Prosciutto folds nicely as well.
- Substitute a sliced goat cheese log for any of the ingredient rows
- Substitute your favorite hard cheese for the pepper jack and cheddar cheese cubes. You can cut up a block of blue cheese, aged white cheddar or smoked gouda. There are so many delicious cheeses
- I would NOT recommend using soft cheeses because they do best when sliced right before serving. Harder cheeses are better for this beautiful board!
- To make this Christmas tree Charcuterie board extra sweet, make a row with Divinity Candy or Christmas Cracker Candy squares.
- If you want to include dips, put a dip in a small bowl at the top of the tree then top with the cheese star!
If you want to make this board extra special, go the extra mile by making Blue Cheese Stuffed Olives or Easy Ranch Pretzels (Seasoned Pretzels) and using them in a row!
Board Addition Ideas
Have fun with it! You can surround your charcuterie tree with with candy canes. Or, stud wrapped Hershey’s kisses throughout the tree to make ornaments!
Alternative Shapes
You can absolutely experiment with different shapes than the shape of a Christmas tree! Stars are super cute!
You can also make a Christmas Charcuterie Wreath by arranging the ingredients in a circle and surrounding them with rosemary sprigs.
Where To Find Affordable Charcuterie Ingredients
My favorite places to find affordable charcuterie ingredients are Aldi and Trader Joe’s. If you don’t have access to either of those, I think Wal-Mart is a good alternative too for basic items like we have on this board.
How Long Can Charcuterie Stay at Room Temperature?
Charcuterie items can stay at room temperature for about 3 hours, at which point you will need to throw any leftovers away.
Recipe Equipment
You will need a large board for this charcuterie tree. The board I used was approximately 11.5 inches by 15 inches. You will also need a star shaped cookie cutter.
Even if you don’t make this charcuterie board, I hope that you find the perfect holiday appetizer for the Christmas season. You can find all of my other holiday appetizer recipes here.
If you do make this Christmas Tree charcuterie, let me know how it went in the comments below!
The Easiest Christmas Charcuterie Board
Ingredients
- 1 slice Colby jack cheese, for the star
- 1 bunch green grapes
- 8-12 round crackers
- 3 ounces dry salami
- 4 ounces cheddar cheese cubes
- 6 ounces cherry tomatoes
- 6 ounces pepper jack cheese cubes
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1 cucumber, small, sliced into rounds
- 10 mini pretzel sticks, for the trunk
- sprigs of fresh thyme or fresh rosemary, for garnish
Equipment
Instructions
- First, make your tree topper. Use a star shaped cookie cutter to cut a star shape out of the slice of Colby jack cheese. Place the star at the top of a wooden cutting board.
- Beneath the star, add the green grapes.
- Beneath the grapes, place the crackers in an angled row.
- Fold each piece of salami into quarters, then place in a row behind the crackers.
- Add cheddar cheese cubes underneath the crackers. The row should be slightly longer than the crackers to start creating the shape of the tree.
- Add the cherry tomatoes as the next layer, again, making a slightly longer row.
- Next, add the pepper jack cheese cubes, then the cranberries and cucumbers.
- Then, add the pretzel sticks to form the trunk of the tree.
- Finally, lay the fresh herb sprigs in between some of the rows to mimic tree branches.
