The Absolute Best Ingredients For A Patriotic Charcuterie Board

If you're in major need of a morale boost this upcoming Independence Day, what better way to cure your patriotic red, white and blues than with a festive charcuterie board? This fourth of July, skip the hotdogs and allow yourself independence from the grill by making a patriotic charcuterie board instead. It is an easy and fun make-ahead option that is sure to brighten your table scape decor. 

According to Taste of Home, what makes a great charcuterie board is variety in color, texture, and flavors. With more variety on the board, your guests will have a wide range of bites to pair and more opportunity to find their favorite combinations. 

All you'll need is a large serving platter or board, some cute patriotic-themed cookie cutters, cheese knives, and insight on the ingredients that make for the absolute best patriotic cheese board. Pull out a pen and paper. You'll want to pay close attention to these tips.

Festive cookie cutters are such a fun and creative way to bring your charcuterie board theme to life. Tammy Leonard of The Gifted Wreath suggests using a harder cheese, as this will be easier to cut and hold its shape than a very soft cheese. Leonard recommends letting your hard cheese soften just a bit before cutting because if it's too hard, the cheese may crack and crumble. She also suggests using a white cheddar or gouda to cut shapes out of. Another good option to cut shapes from is a butterkäse, per Wisconsin Cheese. It is easy to slice and has a buttery texture.

The food blog, Ain't Too Proud to Meg suggests a softer cheese cut out option that can be added to the mix — a brie cut-out. Fill the cut out with raspberry jam or pomegranate seeds. President Cheese notes that brie and jam are a classic pairing and crowd pleaser. Additionally, a few soft cheese options that don't get cut into shapes allow for some height variation on the board. A veined blue cheese and a white stilton with cranberries are great options, according to The Gifted Wreath. 

To add color to the board, you'll need a variety of salumi and an assortment of red and blue vegetables, fruit, jams, or spreads. The charcuterie board should appear abundant and full. According to the Wisconsin Cheese Meat and Cheese Pairing Guide, certain cheeses complement each other better than others, but that shouldn't stop you from providing an array of items. The fun is figuring out what works best together. 

Prosciutto is a great crowd pleaser and serving it beside some crumbled parmesan cheese is even better since they pair well. Soppressata is a hard salami you can cut into rounds or on a bias for a variation of shapes on the board. 'Nduja, a bright red and spicy spreadable salami, can be paired with an Alpine-style cheese to cool down the heat and it's difficult to resist, via Wisconsin Cheese.

Finally, to fill in the gaps with more red and blue, blogger Meg Quinn suggests using fruits like cherries, strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries, via Ain't Too Proud to Meg. Additionally, Cooking with Ruthie recommends making festive watermelon star cutouts topped with provolone cheese cutouts and two blueberries held together with toothpicks. Although she features the festive treats as a holiday appetizer, you can add them to your charcuterie board.

For texture, dried fruit is an essential addition to any great charcuterie board. For sweetness, a cranberry Riesling compote or cherry spread are great additions. For crunch, vegetables like breakfast radishes and white asparagus will do.