It’s officially fall! Can’t think of a better way to kick the season off with a simple fruit and cheese board. Made up of fresh seasonal red & black plums, and apples paired with rich blue cheese, soft bufala mozzarella garnished with dried apricots, pumpkin seeds, raw honey, cinnamon spiced candied pecans served with mixed bread and crackers.

With any board you always want to start with placing your cheeses. Depending on the crowd for two people two different types of cheeses will do. For 4-6 you’ll want at least 3 (soft, aged, strong) and for 10 and up you’ll want 4-5. We were just two as you can see I separated the blue cheese to spread the board out a bit and make it look fuller. I opted for a bufala mozzarella to balance out the sharpness of the blue cheese and the size was perfect for just two 2 people. Ideally I would have went for a burrata I love how creamy and soft it is however it is quite big for just people and it’s one of those thats best to finish once you use it as it doesn’t save very well.

Next you’ll want to layer your fruits and meat if you want to incorporate some nice cured meats. Meats are not always needed on a board especially for just a few people it can be nice to go meatless and stick to fresh lighter options. Try and place those around the cheeses with some going more across the boards, others stacked vertically and skin up vs. skin down to give it some nice depth and everything not look the same. Makes it more appealing 🙂

Last you want to fill in the gaps with everything else. Add your nuts, dried fruits, breads and crackers, if you want to add more savoury items like pickles, pickled vegetables add those to. Top your soft cheese with things like honey, fresh fruits, seeds, chocolate to finish it off and make it look perfect. We love the look of brie garnished with honey and fresh fruits it’s such a nice finishing touch. Fill in any other gaps with fresh herbs if you have any on hand and voila! You’ve got yourself a beautiful board whether it’s to enjoy as a snack or serve as a centrepiece item for family and friends.

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Print Recipe

seasonal fruit and cheese graze board

Filled with fresh seasonal fruits like plums and apples paired with a strong blue cheese and fresh bufala mozzarella garnished with candied pecans, cacao nibs, pumpkin seeds, and dried apricots.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time5 minutes mins

Total Time15 minutes mins

Course: Appetizers

Keyword: apple, blue cheese, charcuterie, cheese, cheese board, fall, fruits, plums, seasonal

Servings: 2 -4

Author: the communal feast

Ingredients

• 1 package of blue cheese
• 1 package of bufala mozzarella
• 1 fresh baguette cut and toasted
• 1 red plum thinly sliced
• 1 black plum thinly scliced
• 1 apple thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup of pecans
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• your choice of crackers
• honey to serve
• garnish: dried apricots pumpkin seeds, cacao nibs

Instructions

• Start by preparing the candied pecans. Bring a small sauce pot to medium heat, add the butter and allow to melt. Add the pecans once melted and stir to coat cooking for 2 minutes . Add the brown sugar and continue to stir until melted and coated around the pecans for 3 minutes. Once the brown sugar has melted and starts to stick to the pecans turn the heat off and add in the cinnamon, toss to coat and transfer to a plate to dry. I like to serve the pecans warm but you can absolutely let them cool completely if you prefer
• Place your baguette pieces in the oven at 425 degrees F to give them a light toast. Spray with olive oil and salt and pepper for a bit of flavour. Cook for 3-4 minutes until nice and golden. You can serve a mixture of toasted baguette and non toasted depending on your guests preference.
• Next you’ll want to place your cheese spread apart on your board, followed by your fruits, pickled veggie and meats if adding.
• Last, place the dried fruits, nuts and bread to fill the remaining gaps, garnish your cheeses and sprinkled any seeds you want to incorporate.
• Enjoy!