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Build a scary, snack-filled Halloween Charcuterie Board for your next Halloween party. Filled with kid-friendly meats and cheese, snacks, and sweets, this board is fun to build and will thrill kids of all ages.
Meggan’s notes
As a classically-trained chef, I had an entire class devoted to cold appetizers, charcuterie, and cheese boards. We made our own sausage and cheese, and we built the most epic grazing boards you’ve ever seen.
So when it comes to charcuterie, I’ve got plenty of ideas and all the tips and tricks to make sure you find success, too. I love a holiday snack board, and this Halloween-themed charcuterie board is one of my favorites.
I designed it with kids in mind, so you’ll see simpler meats and cheese, nothing too exotic, and plenty of family-friendly snacks. Feel free to customize and change as you see fit. And of course, any spooky decor touches are always welcome! I love to fill the kids’ bellies before they set out for an evening of trick-or-treating.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Meats: I designed this Halloween snack board with kids in mind, so you’ll see basic types of meats. If you’re feeding adults, feel free to veer towards cured meats, chorizo, and salami instead.
- Cheeses: I chose kid-friendly cheeses for this Halloween board. Use Halloween-themed, small cookie cutters to slice firm cheeses into pumpkins, ghosts, or witch hats. If you’re entertaining adults, consider 1 of each of the following types:
- Soft cheese: Brie, feta, Camembert, chèvre, ricotta, goat cheese
- Semi-hard cheese: Fontina, muenster, Gouda, Havarti, blue cheese, Manchego, Gruyère, Comté
- Firm cheese: Cheddar, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Romano
- Fruit and vegetables: Look for orange, green, and black fruits and veggies and select the ones you think your guests will enjoy the most. Seasonal produce is always best!
- Snacks: Crackers, pretzels, crostini, chips, candy, cookies, and nuts all work well here. You’re looking for themed snacks to fill in the gaps of your board. Consider dried apricots or other dried fruit, walnuts, Marcona almonds, chocolate, or tiny snack cakes.
Equipment notes
- Boards and platters: Wood, marble, slate; any flat, food-safe surface can act as a blank canvas for your Charcuterie Board. If you’re not certain that the surface is safe to serve food or easy to clean, line it with parchment paper.
- Dishes: Small bowls and cups can keep dips, jams, olives, and other ingredients that might roll or drip from invading the space of the other ingredients.
- Serving tools: Cheese knives, appetizer forks, small tongs, toothpicks, and tiny spoons ensure that the board stays as sanitary as possible and guarantee that guests can snag the items they like easily. No need to worry about investing in a matching set; a mix-and-match look can be stylish, too.
Props and snacks
You can source most props and Halloween candy at local stores when the season is right (Trader Joe’s always has a lot of fun things). However, sometimes it’s easy and convenient to shop online. When it comes to snacks and candy, seek out a variety of flavors and different textures (some soft, some hard, some crunchy, some chewy). Here are all the items I bought on Amazon:
- Pumpkin cookie cutters
- Skeleton hands
- Spiders
- Candy corn
- Candy eyeballs
- Caramel corn
- Mellowcreme pumpkin candies
Step-by-step instructions
- Select your board, then gather your meats. Fold or roll the meats and arrange in separate areas of the board.
- Pair each cheese with one of the meats.
- Add fruits and vegetables (in bowls if it makes sense). Add any spreads or jams.
- Add crackers, candy, cookies, and any other snacks. Layer and overlap when needed; step back to view the board from afar to spot any slim spots.
- Decorate the board with garnishes and Halloween props as desired.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This board is designed to feed at least 12 as part of a Halloween buffet. If this is the main food for a party, it will serve 4 to 6.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: Assemble the full board, cover it with plastic wrap, and refrigerate up to one day in advance. Bring to room temperature right before the party starts.
- Sauces and spreads: Add your favorite dips, hummus, jellies, jams, and honey.
- Midwestern Charcuterie Board: Try my Midwest Charcuterie Board for my favorite Wisconsin snacks like ham and pickle roll-ups, mini cheese balls, venison sausage, dill dip, and red pepper jelly with cream cheese.
Frequently Asked Questions
Choose a selection of meats, cheese, fruit, nuts, jams or jellies, snacks, crackers, and Halloween-themed candy.
The 3-3-3 rule ensures a variety of foods on your board. Choose at least 3 meats, 3 veggies, and 3 fruits or veggies, and 3 starches for every charcuterie board.
1. Avoid overcrowding: You want it to look abundant but not messy. Be sure to refill it throughout your event, too.
2. Avoid fruits that turn brown: Bananas, pineapples, and melons can turn brown. Toss apples in lemon juice to keep them looking fresh.
3. Avoid cooked vegetables: Soft, mushy vegetables are unappealing on a platter. It’s okay to quickly blanch raw veggies (boil rapidly and shock in ice water) to tenderize and set their bright colors. Or, serve fresh or pickled veggies. Some vegetables, such as Brussels sprouts, eggplant, and zucchini are best served cooked, so it’s best to avoid them here.
4. Avoid spicy foods: Some people, and many children, are sensitive to spicy foods and won’t know that they’ve eaten something until its too late. Spicy items or condiments can be served off the platter and carefully labeled.
5. Avoid choosing the same everything: You need a variety of colors, textures, and flavors on your board. Soft, hard, crunchy, chewy, sweet, savory. For the most interesting platter, choose a little bit of everything.
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Halloween Charcuterie Board
Ingredients
The meats (see note 1):
- 8 ounces deli ham
- 8 ounces genoa salami
- 8 ounces pepperoni
The cheeses (see note 2):
- 8 ounces Colby Jack cheese cubed
- 8 ounces cheddar cheese sliced or cut into shapes
- 8 ounces pepper jack cheese cubed
The fruits and vegetables (see note 3):
- green grapes
- blackberries or blueberries
- fresh figs or strawberries, halved
- pimento-stuffed green olives
The snacks (see note 4):
- cheese crackers Such as Cheez-Its or Cheese Nips
- Townhouse crackers or Ritz crackers
- candy corn or mellocreme pumpkins
- caramel corn or pumpkin cookies
The decorations:
- Fresh flowers or herbs
- mini pumpkins or other Halloween decorations
- Candy eyes or plastic spiders
Instructions
- Select your board, then gather your meats. Fold or roll the meats and arrange in separate areas of the board.
- Pair each cheese with one of the meats. Add fruits and vegetables (in bowls if it makes sense). Add any spreads or jams.
- Add crackers, candy, cookies, and any other snacks. Layer and overlap when needed; step back to view the board from afar to spot any slim spots.
- Decorate the board with garnishes and Halloween props as desired.
Notes
- Meats: I designed this board with kids in mind, so the meats are basic. If you’re feeding adults, feel free to choose from these categories instead:
- Dry-Cured Pork or Beef: Serrano ham, prosciutto, country ham, Iberico ham, capicola, speck, bresaola
- Salami: Soppressata, finocchiona, peppered salame
- Spreadable meat: ‘Nduja, duck pâté, chicken liver pâté, rillettes
- Cheeses: I chose kid-friendly cheeses for this Halloween board. If you’re entertaining adults, consider 1 of each of the following types:
- Soft: Brie, feta, Camembert, chèvre, ricotta
- Semi-hard: Fontina, muenster, Gouda, Havarti, Roquefort, gorgonzola, Manchego, Gruyère, Comté
- Firm: Cheddar, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Romano
- Fruit and vegetables: Look for orange, green, and black fruits and veggies and select the ones you think your guests will enjoy the most. Seasonal produce is always best!
- Snacks: Crackers, pretzels, crostini, chips, candy, cookies, and nuts all work well here. You’re looking for themed snacks to fill in the gaps of your board.
- Yield: This board is designed to feed at least 12 as part of a Halloween buffet. If this is the main food for a party, it will serve 4 to 6.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
Fantastic
Incredible. Creativity.
Thank you, Kim! – Meggan
It’s adorably scary!
Thank you, Rebecca! – Meggan