This charcuterie board is the perfect accompaniment to a not-too-scary movie: It’s more cute than creepy, and it’s loaded with themed snacks and sweets.
To create a festive Halloween charcuterie board shaped like a jack-o’-lantern, we focused on orange and black snacks and candies. The orange elements represent the pumpkin, while the black elements form the "carved" eyes and smile.
What to Include
Chewy Candies: Halloween isn’t complete without candy corn and mellocreme pumpkins. We also added gummy peach rings, fall-colored gummy worms, and gummy vampire teeth. Halloween-themed Peeps are a fun touch if you can find them!
Black Licorice: This helps create the eyes and mouth for the jack-o’-lantern. Adding gumball eyeballs to the middle of the eyes adds a slightly eerie detail.
Chocolate Treats: Orange M&Ms from a mixed bag are perfect for filling up spaces—these will disappear fast! Create the stem with a row of Oreos and include some purple-foil Hershey’s Kisses for color contrast. Stores like Costco often carry a wide selection of Halloween chocolates.
Savory Snacks: Add some salty orange snacks like Cheez-Its and cheddar cheese balls to balance the sweetness. We also used peanut butter popcorn balls for a unique texture.
How to Assemble Your Halloween Charcuterie Board
Step 1: Arrange the Eyes and Mouth
Start by placing black licorice (like licorice cats, bites, or jelly beans) into triangle shapes for the eyes and forming a smile for the mouth. By arranging these first, you’ll have a clear layout for your board.
Place a gumball eyeball in the middle of each eye and use an Oreo for the nose.
Step 2: Add Hershey’s Kisses
Create a curved line of Hershey’s Kisses on the right side of the board, stretching from top to bottom. Place the popcorn balls next to them, filling in the space between the popcorn and the edge with mellocreme pumpkins.
Tip: Insert popsicle sticks into the peanut butter popcorn balls to make them easier to grab.
Step 3: Highlight the Smile
Surround the black licorice smile with cheddar cheese balls on top and peach gummy rings underneath. Depending on your board’s size, the Hershey’s Kisses may touch the smile’s right edge.
Step 4: Fill in Between the Eyes and Mouth
Fill the space between the eyes and mouth with candy corn, and place orange M&Ms between the eyes.
Step 5: Balance with Pumpkin Peeps
Place pumpkin-shaped Peeps at the bottom left of the board to balance the visual weight with the peanut butter popcorn balls.
Step 6: Add the Remaining Candy
Arrange any leftover Cheez-Its, gummy worms, and vampire teeth gummies in the upper left corner.
Step 7: Add Final Touches
Bring out your Halloween-themed plates and napkins, and prepare a seasonal drink to serve alongside your festive board!
To add a bit more flair to your Halloween charcuterie board setup, consider using simple decorations like bat shapes cut from black construction paper or a spiderweb-themed table runner. Any spooky decorations you already have at home can help set the scene and complement the board.
Although we love the look of a jack-o’-lantern-shaped charcuterie board, you can easily customize it into other fun Halloween shapes like bats, spiders, or ghosts. You could even get creative and arrange your snacks to look like a skeleton.
Feel free to personalize your board by including your favorite Halloween treats, even if they don't stick to the orange and black color scheme. For a special touch, add homemade Halloween cookies, such as Frankenstein-themed ones, to match the spooky season!
Comments(5)