We love mixed media servingware. And this particular juxtaposition of woodsy birch with modern, sleek metal in a graphic pattern in a cheeseboard just makes us drool. Add the pretty red cranberries on white goat cheese served with nutty crackers, and you’ve got a beautiful holiday appetizer.
We found an end cap full of birch rounds at Michael’s, but a quick Google search reveals plenty of affordable options online as well (we put our entire cheeseboard together for less than $8). Our patterned base was a candle holder from Kohl’s that secretly wanted to be part of a cheeseboard. The original vision was to use a candlestick base, but this one just jumped off the shelf at us. Get creative!
While we love it with a wheel of brie or the beautiful cranberry-crusted goat cheese in this recipe, we also thought it would make a really cute cupcake stand. You could buy one of the bigger birch rounds and make a full-blown cake stand, too!
The wood on these rounds tends be a little on the rougher side, but we like the texture. It’s a bit difficult to clean, however, so you could use a food-safe sealant if you want. Either way, just be sure to wipe the top of the plate with a damp cloth and not to submerge the wood.
- Birch Round
- Base (candle holders, tumblers and some vases are great options)
- Food safe sealant
- Adhesive (we used hot glue so it wouldn't be super-permanent, since we may want to use the candle holder for its originally intended purpose some day!)
- Apply sealant to birch round according to the package's instructions.
- Apply adhesive to base.
- Center birch round and adhere. Let dry before using.
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 log goat cheese, left out of the refrigerator for about 15 minutes
- crackers or crostini, for serving
- Pulse the cranberries in a food processor until chopped. You could also chop them by hand, but it would be a little more difficult!
- Spread the cranberries in an even layer on a sheet of wax paper.
- Roll the goat cheese in the cranberries, pressing lightly to adhere them to the cheese. Don't forget about the ends of the log!
- Serve with crackers or crostini.
