Above: First, map out and decorate your table. Just pull each tray off of it as you prepare the food.
Above: Turkey Charcuterie Board
Turkey Charcuterie Board
Ingredients:
Large round butter crackers (14 or so crackers)
Various thinly sliced deli meats of your choice, such as salami, peppered salami, and soppressata
Crostini slices
Sliced cheddar cheese
Sliced Colby Jack cheese
Parmesan crisps
Bosc pear
Two candy eyeballs
Directions:
First layer:
Place large round butter crackers and place them around the outer rim of a round serving platter. Top the butter crackers with thinly sliced deli meat (such as salami or soppressata).
Second layer:
Place a layer of crostini slices on top of the meat. Use leaf cutters like these (found on Amazon) to cut cheese slices into leaf shapes. Place the leaf-shaped cheese on top of the crostini slices.
Third layer:
Place a layer of another type of sliced deli meat on top of the leaf-shaped cheese, being careful not to completely cover the leaf shapes. Cut square Colby Jack cheese slices into four equal parts to make four cheese squares per slice. Place these on top of this layer of deli meat.
Fourth layer:
Place another layer of sliced deli meat on top of the Colby Jack squares (I used peppered salami this time). Place Parmesan crisps on top of the sliced deli meat. Break the crisps to fit, if desired.
Turkey Body:
Decide which side of the pear you want to be the front. Place it on the platter and see how it sits. If necessary, cut a slice off of the curved portion of the back of the pear so the turkey sits up the way you want it to, and so it doesn't roll around.
Using a sharp knife, cut a slice of cheddar cheese into a small triangle for the beak and cut out the legs and feet to your desired shape. Use a little deli meat for a wattle. I used a little white Betty Crocker cupcake icing to get the eyeballs, beak, and wattle to stick to the pear. You could also use some corn syrup. Simply place the legs/feet onto the platter under the pear/turkey body.
Chill until ready to serve.
Above: I made a basic veggie platter with broccoli, jicama, grape tomatoes, cauliflower, sugar snap peas, baby carrots, black olives, and green olives with ranch dip.
Above: I used chocolate hummus on one side and a store-bought yogurt fruit dip on the other. The fruits I used were pears, red and green apples, cutie oranges, red grapes, green grapes, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, golden berries, and dried apricots. I started by covering the opening to hide the aluminum foil within the cornucopia. See below for instructions on how I made the cornucopia.
Cornucopia
Ingredients:
Aluminum foil
Cooking spray
4-5 cans seamless crescent dough sheets (not pre-cut)
Pizza cutter or kitchen shears.
Various fruits and fruit dips
Directions:
Using aluminum foil, form the shape of a cornucopia. Once you have achieved your desired shape, place the foil mold on a baking sheet, and spray the aluminum foil mold with cooking spray.
Using seamless crescent dough sheets (not pre-cut), cut the dough into strips using a pizza cutter.
Twist each strip of dough, if desired, to give the cornucopia more texture. Wrap the dough strips one by one around the foil mold, starting at the back and working your way to the front. Make sure to avoid any gaps.
Repeat until the cornucopia is completely covered. Braid some of the strips and use them to decorate the opening of the cornucopia.
Bake the cornucopia at 350 degrees F, rotating during baking, if necessary, until it is evenly browned.
Cool the cornucopia completely before placing it on your serving tray and arranging the fruit and fruit dips.
Above: I purchased some cinnamon swirl, honey rye, and cranberry orange bread from a local bakery. I cut them into smaller pieces and served them alongside some homemade freezer jams (peach, strawberry, and pear). I also had butter on the side for anyone who wanted it.
Above: This tray had various fall-inspired treats. Maple leaf cookies, white yogurt-dipped pretzels, pumpkin-shaped candies, apple cookies, pumpkin cookies, fall Werther's caramels (cinnamon, caramel apple, and pumpkin spice), and some sliced apples with caramel dip.
Above: This tray had various pretzels with mustard, some mini quiches (spinach as well as egg and bacon), and some slow cooker meatballs.
