Here’s a charcuterie board I put together before becoming a vegetarian (obviously). Everything aside from the rosemary I plucked from my yard, came from Trader Joe’s. Photo by Kat Schuster.

Good morning, it’s 7 a.m., though it somehow feels like it’s 5 a.m. 

I could never fully wrap my head around why this hangover-adjacent phenomenon occurs at the spring forward of Daylight Savings Time, but I suppose I could just be feeling that a little harder, having just returned from my heavenly NOLA-vacay. 

(Speaking of which, thank you to everyone who responded to last week’s newsletter with compliments and ((a ton of)) recommendations for the next time I visit Crescent City — j’adore.)

Anyway, let’s brush the sleepy out of our eyes, pull on our favorite shades and prepare ourselves for an extra hour of sun — and warmer weather on the horizon. To me, that says it’s picnic season again, which also means it’s charcuterie season. 

What? You can’t have a proper outdoor party without a party platter. And while charcuterie is a 15th-century French term for cured meat (that’s shar-coo-ter-ee), today it’s pretty much just used to describe any pile of sharable yummies. 

So, let’s get to it. First, I’ll explain how to build a charcuterie board and then, I’ll share some of my favorite parks to enjoy your beautiful party platter. 

Last summer, I interviewed Vanessa Harmon, a former lawyer turned turophile (a cheese master), who had just opened The Vintage LBC, a cheese and wine shop in Bixby Knolls. Today, I’ll share some of the knowledge she imparted to me that day as well as some of the tricks I’ve picked up along the way. 

Here are six steps to building a charcuterie board.

Step 1: Pick your theme

Don’t bristle; a platter full of snacks (a.k.a. Girl Dinner) is hard to hate, easy to make and you can really assemble a charcuterie of anything — from a Bloody Mary-themed board to a waffle breakfast board. Heck, you could even try to build this eccentric St. Patrick’s Day board with green cupcakes, Rainbow Airheads, chocolate coins and of course, Lucky Charms. 

I may have turned to a vegetarian (sometimes pescatarian) diet last year, but that hasn’t stopped me from putting on a mean meat-free party platter when the occasion arises. Check out my vegetarian board below.

Photo by Kat Schuster.

Vanessa for one, sells a good amount of vegan and vegetarian cheese in her shop. And now, you can get cured meat mimicry at the Plant Butchers, the city’s first vegan deli. 

When picking your theme, you may also want to consider the season. Like fruits and vegetables, there are seasons for some cheeses. For the spring, Vanessa likes an Alp Blossom, a fragrant cow-milk cheese that is covered in dry flowers.

Step 2: Go shopping

You’re going to need to visit a grocery store, deli and/or a cheese shop to get everything you need. Here are the places I recommend checking out in Long Beach: 

Step 3: Get cheezy 

I always pick my cheeses first and build my masterpiece around them. 

According to Vanessa, balance between flavor and texture is important when it comes to selecting cheeses. You might want a variety — a hard or semi-firm cheese such as the Drunken Goat (goat’s milk); a soft, double-cream cheese such as Fromager D’affinois or an aged Gouda.

If you’re building a strictly vegetarian board, you might consider visiting a cheese shop like Vanessa’s that offers cheese made with vegetable rennet instead of animal rennet. For example, plant-based rennets can be produced with artichokes.

To find dairy-free options, the Plant Butchers often have vegan brie, cotija, goat cheese, mozzarella, sharp cheddar spread and Swiss on hand. 

Step 4: Pick your protein 

After selecting a balance of cheese textures and flavors, it’s time to pick your meats.

“…with the super creamy cheese, let’s get you some prosciutto,” Vanessa said.

To pair with a hard cheese, Harmon suggests salami or a patte.

(I used to love prosciutto, and it’s one of the few meaty things I do miss. If anyone knows where to find a vegan substitute, email me ASAP.)

For those building a vegetarian board, I’d opt for extra nuts, which add a nice crunch. You can also add marinated or roasted tofu, Trader Joe’s’ new vegan pepperoni, or some of the meat alternatives offered at the Plant Butchers. 

Personally, since I do still eat fish occasionally, I like to add thinly sliced smoked salmon either from Costco or Trader Joe’s. 

Step 5: Fill in the gaps 

Here’s where you get to add your fillers, veggies, fruits and sides — cucumbers, carrots, strawberries, hummus, honey, jam, dried fruit, chocolate, tzatziki, olives, pickles, beets, artichoke hearts, gherkins, roasted tomatoes — the sky’s the limit. 

“Lots of dried fruit and (dried candied) oranges are wonderful,” Vanessa said. “It gives it a nice pop of color.”

Step 6: Make it pretty 

Speaking of color, my finishing touch is always to add some flowers and rosemary. Peony tulips are great for spring, while eucalyptus and fresh sage can be great for the holiday season. Vanessa tells me you can even find edible flowers to adorn your board with. 

Plus, you can mess around with the actual arrangement of your palette, I mean your board. 

“I’m always learning new techniques,” Vanessa said. “You can make the meats into a salami rose, you can make these little bridges. There’s different ways of folding and cutting cheeses. … If it’s a nice firm cheese, you can make these nice little geometric shapes.”

Time to park it

A couple sits on the grass overlooking the Colorado Lagoon in Belmont Heights.
A couple sits on the grass overlooking the Colorado Lagoon in Belmont Heights. Photo by Kat Schuster

Now that you’ve completed your beautiful board, whether it’s a Mediterranean assortment, a pickle charcuterie board or whatever it is you were able to create, get ready to (carefully) saran-wrap that sucker and take it to the park, where you and a few friends or a date can enjoy it. 

Here are some of my favorite parks around Long Beach to picnic at: 

  • Marine Stadium (which also has a beach) 
  • El Dorado Park
  • Drake Park
  • Lincoln Park
  • Rose Park
  • Bixby Annex Park (the oft-misnamed stretch of green off Ocean Boulevard and Junipero Avenue)
  • My go-to spot though, is the grassy area by the Colorado Lagoon.

Bon appétit — and please send me photos of your charcuterie creations. 

Kat Schuster is the assistant editor for the Long Beach Post. You can reach her at [email protected].