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Home » Recipes » Halloween Recipes

Published: Oct 10, 2023 by Amanda McGrory-Dixon

Halloween Charcuterie and Cheese Board

Jump to Recipe
The Halloween charcuterie board on a black and white textured surface with a spooky mist coming in on the sides and text overlay on top of the image.
The Halloween charcuterie board on a black and white textured surface with a spooky mist coming in on the sides and text overlay on top of the image.

For an easy and quick appetizer that feeds a crowd, this Halloween charcuterie and cheese board is always a party favorite. Pick your favorite cured meats, cheeses, spreads, seasonal fruits and spooky decor and watch everyone happily devour every bite. Whether you’re hosting a Halloween party or a scary movie night, everyone will love snacking on this festive charcuterie platter.

The Halloween charcuterie board on a black and white textured surface with a spooky mist coming in on the sides from dry ice.
Jump to:
  • Why You’ll Love This Recipe
  • Ingredients
  • Step-by-Step Instructions
  • How to Scale Servings
  • Recipe FAQs
  • Expert Tips
  • Perfect Pairing
  • Get More Halloween Party Recipes
  • 📖 Recipe

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Let’s make your Halloween party extra delicious and simplify your hosting responsibilities with this grazing board.

  • Always a crowd-pleaser.
  • Endlessly customizable. 
  • Takes hardly any time and skill to prepare.
  • Easily adjust your servings. 
  • Makes a fun presentation.
  • Prepare ahead of party time.

Ingredients

The meat and cheese board ingredients on a dark textured surface with black and white labels by the items.

When putting together this Halloween snack board, I like to pick two to four items from the below categories. Some items, like the meat and cheese, are available year round, but I like to put a seasonal spin on the other items to keep with the Halloween theme.

Meats: You're welcome to pick your favorite cured meats. I went with prosciutto, chorizo, soppressata and a traditional salami. 

Cheeses: To satisfy the cheese lovers, I like to offer four types of cheese featuring different textures — a hard cheese, semi-soft cheese, soft cheese and spreadable cheese. Here, we have cheddar, havarti, Brie and goat cheese.

Fresh and dried fruit: With those deep hues, black mission figs, red grapes and dried cherries perfectly add to those spooky vibes. Apple slices and pear slices are also great for this time of year.

Spreads: For a sweet spread, apple butter is perfect for this time of year, which is what I served here. You could also go with a cranberry compote, pumpkin butter or fig jam. Whole-grain mustard, infused olive oils, pâté or pesto is a great option for a savory spread. 

Other snacks: Pistachios are fun with their green color for Halloween as well as brined and marinated nibbles, such as black and green olives, tapenade, and marinated peppers and mozzarella balls. Of course, pumpkin seeds are also great for getting into the Halloween spirit. If you have a Whole Foods near you, check out its antipasto bar for lots of great options.

Bread and crackers: I always like to serve crusty bread as well as a couple cracker options. 

Spooky Halloween decor: While not pictured, feel free to get creative here. Plastic spiders and skulls, mini pumpkins, skeleton hands, gummy creepy crawlers, candy eyeballs and mini cauldrons with dry ice are all festive and fun additions to our spooky board. 

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: We start by placing the assortment of cheeses on the board (photo 1). I like to start with the cheese since those larger items need a bit more room.

Four different cheeses placed on a black wooden board before adding the other meats and snacks.

Step 2: Now we place the different types of cured meats on the board (photo 2).

A selection of meats and cheeses on a black wooden board before adding the other ingredients.

Step 3: With the stars of the show settled, we fill in the remaining space with the dried and fresh fruits, spreads and snacks (photo 3). For marinated items, you may want to serve them in small bowls, but dry items, like nuts, can go straight onto the board. 

A hand placing a bowl of black olives and green olives on a black wooden board with various cured meats and cheeses.

Step 4: For the most fun step, we now add our spooky Halloween decor throughout the platter (photo 4). 

The charcuterie board after all the different categories and Halloween decor have been added.

How easy was that? We now have the perfect Halloween grazing board, filled with everyone’s favorite meats, cheeses and nibbles. 

How to Scale Servings

The recipe card shares ingredient proportions for eight people, but you can easily scale this for your number of guests. We want everyone to have enough for snacking while saving room for more appetizers, dinner and dessert.

  • Meat: 2-3 ounces per person.
  • Cheese: 2-3 ounces per person.
  • Snacks: A small handful per person.
  • Bread and crackers: One soft bread option and two cracker options per person.

Recipe FAQs

What kind of board do you use?

If you have a dedicated cheese board, that’s perfect, but don’t feel like you need one. A large cutting board works perfectly for serving a crowd.

How long can you keep a charcuterie board out?

You can safely keep the meat and cheeses out for about two hours. After that, it’s a good idea to wrap the leftovers and keep them in the refrigerator.

If you’d like to serve your Halloween grazing board for longer, you can always put out smaller portions and replenish as you go.

Can you add desserts and Halloween candy?

The meats are the star of a traditional charcuterie board, but this is your board. If you want to break the “rules” and serve your favorite Halloween candy and sweet treats with those other accompaniments, go right ahead. Besides your classic trick-or-treat candy, think mini Halloween cupcakes, candy pumpkins, candy corn and caramel apples.

Can you use the leftovers? 

Absolutely, charcuterie board leftovers are great for snacking or making some seriously delicious sandwiches. Don’t let those leftovers go to waste. Store your leftovers in an airtight container or tightly cover them with plastic wrap and keep them in the refrigerator.

Expert Tips

Make meat roses: Check out this tutorial for making meat roses. It’s easier than you’d think and makes such a fun presentation.

Prepare Halloween-shaped cheese slices: You can use spooky cookie cutters to make cheese slices in the shape of pumpkins, skulls, ghosts — you name it.

Let the board sit at room temperature before serving: Meat and cheeses are best after removing the chill from the refrigerator. The cold masks some of those wonderful flavors. 

Pick the best quality available: Your charcuterie board is only as good as the products you choose. To me, building a charcuterie board is worth the splurge.

Perfect Pairing

Of course, charcuterie boards are favorites for enjoying some wine. But let’s put a festive touch to the experience and enjoy this board with a glass of Halloween sangria. This red wine-based punch is perfect for serving a party, and everyone will love it with all those meats, cheeses and accompaniments.

My Black Widow Martini is another fun cocktail option. With the muddled blackberries, it pairs beautifully with so many meats and cheese.

For a more traditional wine pairing, I like to offer a red and a white. A crisp, acidic sauvignon blanc or pinot grigio is perfect for keeping your palate refreshed with all those creamy cheeses and rich meats. A nice sparkling wine is also a great choice, and it goes with almost anything.

If red wine is more your style, I recommend a light- or medium-bodied red, which offers more versatility. A pinot noir, merlot or chianti work nicely here.

Prefer a beer? A wheat beer is a great all-purpose pick. This beer has plenty of bubbles and a nice citrusy kick.

I hope you give spooky season an extra festive touch with this easy Halloween charcuterie board. With all those meats, cheese and other tasty nibbles, everyone will love snacking on this grazing board all night long.

Cheers!

A side view of the Halloween charcuterie board with an orange log of goat cheese, other snacks and spooky decor.

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If you love this recipe, please leave a comment with a five-star rating — or simply hit the five-star button in the recipe card. Don't forget to sign up for my newsletter, and you can follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and TikTok.

📖 Recipe

The Halloween charcuterie board on a black and white textured surface with a spooky mist coming in on the sides from dry ice.

Halloween Charcuterie and Cheese Board

For an easy and quick appetizer that feeds a crowd, this Halloween charcuterie and cheese board is always a party favorite. Pick your favorite cured meats, cheeses, spreads, seasonal fruits and spooky decor and watch everyone happily devour every bite. Whether you’re hosting a Halloween party or a scary movie night, everyone will love snacking on this festive charcuterie platter.
5 from 102 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Appetizers
Cuisine: French
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes minutes
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 406kcal
Author: Amanda McGrory-Dixon

Equipment

  • Large cheese board or cutting board
  • Small plates and cheese knives

Ingredients

Cheeses

  • 4 ounces cheddar or other hard cheese
  • 4 ounces havarti or other semi-soft cheese
  • 4 ounces Brie or other soft cheese
  • 4 ounces goat cheese or other spreadable cheese

Meats

  • 4 ounces prosciutto
  • 4 ounces dried chorizo
  • 4 ounces soppressata
  • 4 ounces salami

Spreads

  • Apple butter choose two to four in this category
  • Cranberry compote
  • Pâté
  • Pesto

Fruits

  • Figs choose two to four in this category
  • Black grapes
  • Dried cherries
  • Apple or pear slices

Other Snacks

  • Pistachios choose two to four in this category
  • Olives
  • Marinated peppers and mozzarella balls
  • Pickles

Bread and Crackers

  • Crusty bread cut into slices
  • 2 types of crackers

Spooky Decor

  • Plastic spiders, skulls, gummy worms, candy eyes, dry ice in a mini cauldron

Instructions

  • Place the pieces of cheese on the board.
  • Add the cured meats to the board.
  • Fill in the remaining space with the spreads, fruits, other snacks, bread and crackers.
  • Place the spooky decor throughout the board. Serve with small plates and cheese knives. Enjoy!

Notes

  • To scale the meat and cheese servings, plan for 2-3 ounces meat and 2-3 ounces cheese per person. 
  • Let the board sit in room temperature for 30 minutes before serving to remove the refrigeration chill.
  • Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Nutrition

Calories: 406kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 34g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 88mg | Sodium: 1076mg | Potassium: 181mg | Sugar: 0.2g | Vitamin A: 541IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 237mg | Iron: 1mg
Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @BurrataandBubbles or tag #burratandbubbles!

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Eden says

    November 02, 2023 at 10:22 pm

    5 stars
    I love this charcuterie board! Aside from the ingredients that you've mentioned, I also added my own picks like ham and bacon for meats, strawberry, blueberry for the fruits, and tortilla and potato chips (the more the merrier haha!). Just a few hours after serving, the board is completely empty, my fam really loved it haha! Thank you for this 🙂

    Reply
    • Amanda McGrory-Dixon says

      November 07, 2023 at 7:32 am

      Those sound like wonderful additions!

      Reply
  2. Gina says

    November 02, 2023 at 6:34 pm

    5 stars
    I had this platter in our Halloween party a few days ago and it added a lot of fun! Not only it was delicious but eye-catching as well! The kids had a spooky time!

    Reply
  3. Rory says

    October 28, 2023 at 9:10 pm

    5 stars
    Every Halloween I find myself totally sweeted out. This charcuterie board provides a welcome break from all the candy and cookies. It got lots of compliments at our Halloween party!

    Reply
  4. Maida says

    October 28, 2023 at 5:45 pm

    5 stars
    I tried this on our Halloween party and it became the centerpiece of the night! Everyone loved the variety of flavors and the fun, spooky theme. Thanks for this amazing idea!

    Reply
  5. Jessie says

    October 23, 2023 at 6:36 pm

    5 stars
    Picked fav meats, cheeses, spreads, fruits! So fun and easy. It went fast during my Halloween Birthday Party. Perfect for scary movie nights too!

    Reply

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Hi, I'm Amanda, a Denver-based lady who believes life is best spent with comforting meals, tasty beverages and good company. When I'm not playing in the kitchen, I'm probably exploring new breweries with my husband, Matt, or obsessing over my adorable dog, Baylor.

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