How To: Make a Simple Cheese Board
Holiday entertaining season is in full swing, and there’s nothing better than serving up the perfect charcuterie and cheese board for your guests to enjoy. Cheese boards are great because they don’t require any cooking or baking and you can make them in advance.
Did you know… Kroger has quite the selection of wines and cheeses like Murray’s? With a wide selection of cheeses, you can easily get creative with your own board this holiday season. Recently, I attended an event hosted by Kroger on how to create the perfect cheese board as well as what wines pair with what cheeses. Baltimore, one of Kroger’s wine stewards told us about different types of red and white wines, including the regions that they typically come from. As many of you know, I do not drink at all. However, I thought Baltimore offered some great knowledge that I wanted to share with you.
“Legs” in a wine glass
The “legs” in a wine glass are the tears that stream down the side of the wine glass after it has been swirled. The way that the legs fall typically has to do with the level of alcohol in the wine. The thicker and slower the legs fall the higher the alcohol level is.
Wine and cheese pairings
While certain cheeses and wines pair nicely together, there are actually no strict rules when it comes to wine pairings. Baltimore insists that the best rule of thumb is to drink what you like. If you want something sweeter go for Rieslings and Moscatos. If you like something on the dry side try a Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio.
Cheese Monger Tips & Tricks
- Murray’s recommends a serving size of one ounce per cheese, per person.
- Leave the cheese out at room temperature one hour prior to serving.
- When in doubt think: Something Old. Something New. Something Stinky. Something Blue.
Cheese Pairing Principles
Complimentary: aged gouda paired with fig spread
Contract: blue cheese paired with honey
Terroir: Manchego paired with a Spanish Roja
How to assemble a cheese board
- Make sure to color block
- Think “mild to wild”
- Make it inviting
- Get creative
- Put suggested pairings next to each other
- Put jams, jellies, and spreads in small jars and replenish as needed
What to include on a cheese board?
- A variety of cheeses
- Nuts
- Crackers
- Grapes
- Grape Tomatoes
- Jams, jellies or spreads
- Pretzels
- Assorted fruit
- And more
Pro Tip: Tightly wrap leftover cheese in wax paper or foil and throw them in the vegetable drawer to ensure freshness.
Get creative this holiday season and spread some cheesy holiday cheer!
Best Gift for the Holidays: Grand Rapids Popcorn
Entertain to Win: 5 Tips for your Next Holiday Party
It’s the most wonderful time of the year – why spend it stressed out? With only a couple weeks until Christmas arrives it’s time to enter full planning mode. Recently my amazing friends at Kroger invited me to explore some ways to take the stress out of the holiday season with their Eatertaining Made Simple campaign. Today I am sharing five tips that will make your next holiday party a breeze.
Fill your table with local products
Semi-Homemade
This holiday season be more present with the ones you love and head to Kroger for pre-made vegetable trays, deli trays, cheese boards, cake, cookies and more. All of the pre-made options are set up into a nice presentation and ready for you to share with your guests. These pre-made options are not only delicious but eliminate the number of dishes that you’ll have to do and allow you to spend less time in the kitchen and more time with the ones you love.
DIY Cheeseboard
Signature Cocktail (or Mocktail in my case)
Dessert
Who doesn’t love dessert? Personally, I am a big fan. If you’re not the best baker, no problem! Kroger has plenty of pre-made delicious dessert options, from cheesecake and brownies to cupcakes and cookies you’re sure to find something your guests will love. I absolutely love baking and always try to make a dessert that goes with my party’s theme. This year I am hosting a candy cane themed party and decided to make chocolate candy cane sandwich cookies with ingredients that I found at my local Kroger store.
Chocolate Candy Cane Sandwich Cookies
One of my favorite things to do is make a seasonal cookie. During the fall I made Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal Cream Pies, which were a huge hit – I mean who doesn\’t love pumpkin spice? When it comes to winter one thing that is always on my mind is peppermint. Of course, with holiday parties coming up I wanted to make sure that I made something festive, and peppermint. These Chocolate Candy Cand Sandwich Cookies are everything I hoped for and more. The best part, they\’re vegan and no one will know! The candy cane pieces around the outer edge add the perfect sweet touch. These chocolate candy cane sandwich cookies make a great addition to holiday parties, potlucks, cookie swaps and more. I am wrapping them up and placing them in a tin to mail to friends that are out of state as well as bringing them to a holiday party.
Chocolate Candy Cane Sandwich Cookies
Chocolate Cookie Ingredients
2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup cacao powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup vegan butter, softened to room temperature
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup nondairy milk (or you can use regular)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Peppermint Frosting Ingredients
2 cups confectioners sugar
3 tablespoons vegan butter, softened to room temperature (you can also use regular butter)
3 tablespoons warm water
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
4 candy canes, crushed
Directions
1. Sift flour, cacao powder, and baking soda into a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine.
2. In a separate mixing bowl, cream the butter using a hand mixer or stand mixer.
3. Add in the sugar and whip for one minute – until combined and fluffy.
4. Add vanilla and gradually add the milk – while continuing to whip the mixture.
5. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
6. Mix well using a wooden spoon or spatula.
7. Once combined form the dough into a ball.
8. Split the dough into two equal portions.
9. Place each portion into a piece of parchment paper.
10. Roll it out with your hands between the parchment paper until a log is formed. The log should be about two inches wide.
11. Try to flatten the ends – so you have a cylinder shape.
12. Wrap the two logs, and tightly secure the ends closed.
13. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours or until firm.
14. Once you remove the logs from the refrigerator, unwrap them.
15. Using a sharp knife, cut rounds that are about 1/4-inch thick.
16. Place the cookies on parchment-lined baking sheets.
17. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
18. Bake 5-7 minutes.
19. Allow the cookies to cool completely before frosting.
20. For the peppermint frosting, combine the butter and confectioners sugar in a large mixing bowl.
21. Mix with a stand or hand mixer.
22. While mixing, add in the warm water and peppermint oil.
23. Beat until frosting consistency.
24. Pour the smashed candy canes into a bowl.
25. To assemble the sandwich cookies, spread some frosting onto the bottom of a cookie with a small icing spatula.
26. Place another cookie on top and lightly press so there is some frosting coming out of the sides.
27. Sprinkle crushed candy canes all along the sides of the sandwich – or you can roll the sides into the candy canes.
28. Repeat.
29. Allow the cookies to dry before layering them in a container.
30. These cookies freeze great and make the perfect addition to holiday parties and potlucks.
Waze Adds Snow Warning Feature
Do you have a favorite navigation app? I am personally a big fan of the crowd-sourced navigation app Waze. Waze has definitely upped its game in 2019. First, it brought the voice of Sesame Street’s Cookie Monster to its turn-by-turn direction service. Now, Waze is adding one of the most important features that it could, and just in time. Mother nature is gearing up for t throw some wicked weather across the United States and this year Waze has your bak. Waze now allows you to report icy road conditions as well as unplowed roads. This new function will help keep drivers safe and informed. I admit, as someone who lives in Michigan and deals with awful winters, I am thrilled that you can now report unplowed roads and icy road conditions right on the Waze app.
The new feature is included in the updated version of the Waze app, so make sure you’re up to date. When using Waze, you will now see a snowflake on your display with an “unplowed road” written beside it, which will indicate poor driving conditions. Furthermore, as a driver, if you come in counter with an unplowed road that has not been reported, you can also report this hazardous condition for others to see.
Hit the roads safely this winter with the Waze app.
Fashion meets Food 