The Art of the Board: Fun & Fancy Snack Boards, Recipes & Ideas for Entertaining All Year

by Olivia Carney

Overview

With Olivia Carney’s friendly guidance, you’ll go from hopeless host to host with the most—one salami rose at a time.

With over 75 seasonally inspired, approachable snack boards, recipes, and cocktails, The Art of the Board has all you need for fun, stress-free entertaining year-round. Packed with tips, tricks, and ideas, you’ll be inspired to whip up your next snack board masterpiece—whether it’s creatively plating your Thanksgiving leftovers to impress your family or wowing your friends with your knowledge of fancy cheese and charcuterie.

Not sure where to start? No problem! The in-depth introduction walks you through equipment and ingredients, and the Hopeless Hostess Appendix covers everything from Board Care 101 to step-by-step explanations and photographs that show how to bring your skills to the next level. There’s even helpful suggestions to make your cheese plates travel-friendly so you never arrive empty-handed. And since each board is labeled with difficulty level, approximate cost, and dietary accommodations, you’ll always find a showstopper to fit your lifestyle and budget.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781423661375
Publisher:	Smith, Gibbs Publisher
Publication date:	10/04/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	224
Sales rank:	525,890
File size:	52 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Olivia Carney is a New Jersey–based food influencer and content creator. She daylights as a marketing director for a global healthcare company and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in business administration from Pennsylvania State University. As the founder of a community for charcuterie and snack board lovers across the globe, her mission is to share her passion for food boards in a way that encourages creativity and connectedness with loved ones. She’s had the pleasure of partnering with brands such as Harry & David®, Pottery Barn®, and Marshalls, among others, and has been featured in Gotham magazine, Coastal Style magazine, and PopSugar. She was born in Raleigh, North Carolina, and currently resides in North Jersey.

Table of Contents

Introduction viii

1 The Art of the Board 1

2 Spring

Classy Crudité 28

Bountiful Berries 31

Build-Your-Own Bloody Mary 32

Taste of the Mediterranean 35

Brimful Brunch Board 38

C'est Charcuterie 41

Towering Tea Party 42

A Board Built for Two 45

Say "Cheez" 46

Luck o' the Irish 49

Easter Sunday Board 50

Spring Floral 53

3 Summer

Melon Ball Salad Platter 56

Burrata & Heirloom Tomato Salad 59

Fun in the Sun 60

Summertime Citrus, Mozzarella & Prosciutto 63

The Grill Master 64

Ultimate Taco Tuesday 67

Sushi Board 68

Winery Tour To-Go Box 71

Summer Floral 72

Red, White & Berries 75

S'more, Please! 76

DIY Ice Cream Sundaes 79

4 Fall

Afternoon Pick-Me-Up 82

Fall Harvest 85

Ooey-Gooey Fondue-y 86

Gourmet Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup 89

Spice, Spice, Baby 93

Toil & Treats 95

Game Day Board 98

Thai Takeout It Up a Notch 101

Oktoberfest 102

Thanksgiving Leftovers 105

Thankful for Desserts 106

5 Winter

Built-a-Bagel Board 110

Cozy Hot Cocoa Board 113

Movie Night Board 114

So Very Fondue You 117

Ho-Ho Holiday Cookies 118

Holiday Happy Hour 121

Harry & David® Gift Basket Board 122

The Gift of Holiday Cheer 125

Festival of De-Lights 126

O Christmas Cheese! 129

Gather Round Grazing Table 131

Ring in the New Year 134

6 Dips, Snacks, Cocktails & More

Herby Vegetable Dip 138

Pesto 138

Creamy Hummus 140

Elote Dip 141

Savory Spiced Nuts 143

Candied Bacon 143

Crispy Chickpeas 144

Candied Nuts 145

Quick Pickled Red Onions 147

Watermelon, Feta & Mint Salad 148

Spicy Fried Goat Cheese Balls 151

Lavender & Peach Crostini 152

Apple & Butternut Squash Bruschetta With Honey Ricotta & Garlic Toasts 154

Fig, Prosciutto & Goat Cheese Flatbreads 157

Cracker-Crusted Baked Mac & Brie 158

Mini Cherry & Brie Galettes 161

Gingerbread Cookies 162

Cheese "Cake" 165

Dried Citrus 166

Frosted Rosemary & Frosted Cranberries 169

Elderflower Gin Sour 170

Pretty Pink Lemonade Spritzer 170

Vanilla Old-Fashioned 172

Spicy Cilantro Jalapeño Mezcal Margarita 173

Autumn Harvest Punch 174

Smoked Rosemary & Royal Riviera Pear Bourbon Spritzer 177

Witch's Brew 178

Mulled Wine 181

Board Scraps Simmer Pot 182

Hopeless Hostess Appendix 185

Index 204

Editorial Reviews

08/01/2022

Charcuterie maven Carney debuts with an inviting take on serving boards, using them as staging tableaux for snacks and full-on meals. She offers extensive instructions for building a board (position cheese before carbs) with bonus “Hopeless Hostess Tips” (such as sourcing mismatched utensils at thrift stores for a quirky tablescape), and labels recipes according to difficulty, budget, and dietary restrictions. The highlight, of course, is the food design, which is inspired by the seasons and showcases ingredients including cured meats, cheese, and seasonal fruit, as well as treats such as chocolate bars and graham crackers, which show up in the cleverly titled “S’more, Please” board. Other delights include cracker-crusted baked mac with Brie or showpiece drinks like an elderflower gin sour. Each board is a dynamic interplay of shapes—from fanning, folding, and twisting ingredients into such decorative edibles as a salami rose, as seen in the “So Very Fondue You” board. With its S-shape ribbon of prosciutto tucked among chunky slices of double-crème Brie, fruit, and honey, the Winery Tour to-Go Box is a gift-worthy display that can be wrapped up. Fuel for “likes” when the inevitable snapshot gets shared, this foolproof guide’s for anyone who wants to play and have fun with their food. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

Charcuterie boards are always in vogue, but [The Art of the Board] puts the wow factor into these edible arrangements.
There’re an impressive amount of tips and recipes for boards that engage the senses and meet a range of budgets. The advice on food styling, garnishes, types of cheeses, tableware, and food board gift-giving is helpful, while tips for how to fold meats and cheeses like a pro will have friends asking for the name of your caterer.

Rachel Jagareski

As the first to offer an ‘ultimate’ guide to creating these boards, Carney goes beyond the expected…. Added value lies in Carney's "hopeless hostess" tips and
tricks … and a wine pairing guide. A new kind of board game.

Booklist - Barbara Jacobs

Perfect for your favorite host or hostess, or even for yourself as you gear up for the welcomed hecticness of the holidays.

CNN Underscored - Tanya Edwards and Lesley Kennedy