Table of Contents
An Italian cured Meat and Cheese platter or Antipasto board is a quick no fuss first course or introduction to a meal, especially when you don’t have the time or energy for a heavy first course.
Colorful plates of nibbles including cured meats, cheeses, fresh or marinated vegetables, fruits and nuts make for simple party perfect entertaining.
My mother’s sister (Mummy) Rachel always made some type of savory platter when she entertained large crowds. This was usually over Easter or New Year’s Eve when she celebrated her birthday. In those days there was not a great variety of cured meats available and even the cheese was limited to a few local brands that were barely passable.
Mummy Rachel’s antipasto board always included a delicious seed loaf, French cheese like brie or camembert, preserved figs, egg mayo salad, smoked mussels and a fish smoortjie. My favorite thing on the platter was actually the spicy fish smoortjie made with caramelised onions, fresh tomato and spicy tinned fish. I seldom if ever ate the cakes and desserts on offer and always found a place near the antipasto board.
For a simple cold meat platter include your favorite cheese, sliced cold meats like spicy polony, salami, spiced beef and cooked viennas. This is great for an easy summer supper, for when friends or family drop in unexpectedly or as part of a New Year’s Eve buffet spread.
Are you wondering why anyone would need to write about how to throw together a meat and cheese board if everything was purchased ready made. In my experience, all cheeses and meats do not necessarily complement each other and the combinations here have been extensively tested. I kid you not 🙂
I made my first Italian meat and cheese platter for an article I did a few years ago for an online magazine. The brief was to do a romantic meal for two with a starter, main course and dessert inspired by one of the countries I’ve travelled to. The Italian antipasto platter was inspired by all the appetisers I saw on my vacations in Italy, but could not partake in because the meat was not halaal.
Fortunately, there are a few places in Dubai that sell pork-free halal Italian cured meats including Waitrose and Eataly. Recently, I purchased a selection from a place in Al Quoz. In Cape Town LA Farms in Wynberg sell salami and their own biltong as well as chorizo. Good Hope Meat Hyper have a wide variety of cooked cold meats suitable for a meat and cheese platter.
Read more: Chili Garlic Prawn Pasta with lemon butter sauce and Macerated Strawberries and Mascarpone Cream with Balsamic vinegar
How to make a meat and cheese platter or antipasto board taste good
- I use a slate, marble or a hardwood board for my meat and cheese platter. Soft woods should be avoided as they tend to retain the smells of strong cheese or cured meats.
- Choose 3-4 types of cold cuts or Italian cured meats like salami, prosciutto, pepperoni, soppressata or pastrami. If I have it on hand I also add some biltong, a South African dried meat delicacy. If you are using processed cold meats then spiced beef, pastrami and cooked salami could be used too.
- Choose 3-4 types of cheeses, including hard cheeses (pecorino or parmesan), semi-soft cheese (gorgonzola or fontina) and soft cheese (burrata or mozzarella).
- Add condiments and a garnish that goes with the cured meats and cheeses like pesto, black olive or artichoke spread. If you don’t use a spicy salami or pepperoni you can substitute a harissa spread (not paste) instead of one of the others.
- Add fresh or preserved vegetables like olives, artichokes, stuffed peppers, sun dried tomatoes or fresh cherry tomatoes. If you use olive or artichoke spread you can use one or two of the other vegetables for variety.
- Add fresh and dried fruits and nuts like grapes, figs, cherries or berries, dried figs and apricots (i prefer whatever is seasonal).
- Add fresh honey as a sweet counterpoint to piquant cheese.
- Add plain crostini, crackers and bread sticks to eat with the cheese, meats and condiments.
- Arrange all the ingredients on a large wooden board or platter.
For other appetizer ideas click on the links below:
- Caramelised onion, fig and brie tart
- Cape Malay Daltjies – Spinach and sweet corn fritters
- Sweet corn and polenta fritters
- Circassian Chicken Choux Puffs
Italian cured Meat and Cheese Platter (Antipasto board)
Ingredients
Bread
- 80 grams bread sticks
- 200 grams crackers
Meat
- 80 grams pepperoni
- 80 grams sopressata
- 80 grams bresaola
- 80 grams prosciutto
Cheese
- 100 grams parmesan
- 100 grams gorgonzola
- 100 grams mozzarella balls
Condiments
- 50 grams artichoke spread approximately 1/4 cup
- 60 ml black olive spread approximately 1/4 cup
Fruit - Seasonal fresh or preserved fruits
- 100 grams grapes a small bunch
- 100 grams figs, cut into quarters approximately 3 medium sized
- 100 grams pear, sliced approximately 1/2
Vegetables - Seasonal fresh or preserved vegetables
- 100 grams cherry tomatoes
Nuts
- 50 grams toasted walnuts substitute nuts of your choice
Instructions
- Place the condiments in small bowls and arrange all the ingredients on a large wooden or slate serving board or platter.
- Serve with sparkling grape beverage.
Notes
- 100 grams crostini
- 100 grams pecorino tartufo
- 60 ml honey
- 100 grams cantaloupe or spanspek
Nutrition
Disclaimer: Nutritional information for the recipe is an approximation and varies according to the ingredients and products used.
If you liked the recipe above please consider rating the recipe and leaving a comment below. Also keep in touch on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram for more updates.
Don’t forget to share the recipe with your family and friends and #tantalisemytastebuds if you share one of my recipes that you made on Instagram!
Want more? To get new recipes delivered straight to your inbox, join our club and subscribe to Tantalise My Taste Buds.
24 Comments
pooja Malkani
November 21, 2019 at 9:02 amOMG!!! I could eat it all at once without a pause. The dish is so tempting and delicious. I so wish I could try this out but I am too lazy a cook. Will share it with a friend who can make it for me 😉
Ewuzie Kingsley
November 21, 2019 at 7:38 amAm in love with this already… Already salivating, This is so inviting.. Oh! how i wish someone can treat me with this..
Lea
November 21, 2019 at 6:37 amThese are definitely good ideas for Christmas eve. Wow! ♥ I’m excited!
Sauumye
November 21, 2019 at 2:38 amThe platter looks amazing. It is so eye catching!!! I wish I could assemble such a nice and pretty platter !!!
Clarice
November 20, 2019 at 9:02 amThis is very timely as we’re having friends visiting on Saturday. I am thinking of preparing a grazing table and this is just perfect. Thank you for sharing these tips. Hope I can find the cheese you mentioned locally.
Razena Schroeder
November 20, 2019 at 9:07 amA grazing table sounds awesome. Use your favorite cheeses if you can’t find the recommended ones.
Charlene
November 20, 2019 at 2:50 amMmmm this looks amazing! I love making a meat and cheese board every once in a while.
Petra
November 20, 2019 at 12:57 amI really like your platter. It looks so good i with i could ear it right know
Chel
November 19, 2019 at 8:54 pmThis looks amazing. I always love the meat and cheese platters – but didn’t know it came with such intricate detail. Very neat. Now when I’m done being pregnant I’m totally gonna make me some! SO MUCH FOOD!
Razena Schroeder
November 19, 2019 at 8:57 pmAll the best for the pregnancy and delivery. Apparently my mother had a cheese and fruit craving during her pregnancy with me which may explain my love of both 😂
Melanie williams
November 19, 2019 at 7:34 pmOh wow what a fab looking board of food for sure. so many lovely choices and ideal for get togethers xx
Elena Toma
November 19, 2019 at 7:21 pmColorful, delicious and definitely eye catching ! I was planing to make this for Christmas, I just love how it looks ! The combination between figs, cheese, grapes and walnuts is absolutely amazing and goes great with a nice red wine.
Razena Schroeder
November 19, 2019 at 7:23 pmHaha I actually forgot to add the sparkling alcohol free grape beverage into the photo!
Rachel
November 19, 2019 at 2:40 pmIt’s definitely important to think about the condiments when doing a cheese board. People often forget about them, but a good chutney can make all the difference. I love tomato chutneys and anything with caramelised onion.
Razena Schroeder
November 19, 2019 at 2:43 pmI believe that the little bit of sweetness of chutney or honey somehow enhances the flavor of the savory cheese and I love the combination of sweet and salty.
Marjie Mare
November 19, 2019 at 8:49 amThere is no better way to welcome your girlfriends than serving them with this beautiful tray of deliciousness. I would enjoy this just me and my two kids.
Dominik Morss
November 19, 2019 at 3:41 amThat looks sooooo good 🙂 You totally hit the target for me with this, I could eat through my whole life just with Antipasto plates and the likes! Never seen an in-depth guide like this about actually composing such a “opener meal”. That was definitely very insightful, and I will absolutely try some of the ideas on the next occasion! The honey together with the cheese looks particularly good in my mind right now.
Melissa
November 19, 2019 at 1:55 amOMG this looks so good! I seriously love cheese platters. Especially when everything looks so good.
Razena Schroeder
November 19, 2019 at 2:59 amI love cheese too 😂
Nipa
November 18, 2019 at 10:50 pmWe have SO many meat and cheese options at our local grocery stores, that I’m always overwhelmed. This is a nice guide for putting a good mix together! xo Nipa |https://fashionipa.com
Erika Ravnsborg
November 18, 2019 at 9:02 pmThis is a very eye catching dish. I’d replace the meat with veggies (I’m a vegetarian) but it looks absolutely beautiful
Razena Schroeder
November 18, 2019 at 10:03 pmThere are so many delicious pickled and preserved vegetables that I may do a vegetarian version too 😉
Dalene Ekirapa
November 18, 2019 at 3:52 pmThat board is so colorful, well packed with goodies and so inviting!just reminds me of the meat boards we make during barbecue season. Your presentation is really calling me…now I need a bite, at least! Yummy!
Razena Schroeder
November 18, 2019 at 4:01 pmThe hardest thing about putting it together was arranging everything so that it eye catching 😂