A Valentine’s Charcuterie Board with Pepperoni Roses and heart-shaped cheese hearts are an easy, fun, and delicious way to celebrate with your special someone.
Growing up my parents would have a delicious spread of finger foods for dinner, especially during the holidays. I sure never knew they were creating charcuterie boards back then. It was just “snacks for dinner” to me. This Valentine’s Charcuterie Board with Pepperoni Roses would have been the best thing back then!
This is a great way to stay home with your loved one and share a casual dinner and simple dessert. No long lines to wait in or reservations to be made. Turn on Netflix and pick your favorite movie to watch while enjoying the grazing board and each other’s company.
Or, if you’re planning a family Valentine’s dinner, this is a fun and delicious way to serve easy snacks and sweet treats for a crowd, just adjust your ingredients and use a larger board. Any special occasion can be reason to make this snack board.
Table of Contents
- Valentine’s Charcuterie Board with Pepperoni Roses
- What is a charcuterie board?
- What kind of board should I use in making a charcuterie board?
- Ingredients
- How to Make a Valentine’s Charcuterie Board with Pepperoni Roses
- How do you eat meat roses?
- Tips, Tricks, and FAQs
- Other Valentine’s Day recipes you may enjoy
- Printable Valentine’s Charcuterie Board with Pepperoni Roses Recipe
Valentine’s Charcuterie Board with Pepperoni Roses
I love this one and it’s really a great idea for two to share on Valentine’s Day. It was pretty yummy to sample while creating the blog post to share. The pepperoni roses are easy to make with my easy tutorial, and give your appetizer trays that little something extra.
Of course, the ingredients I used are only a small list of what you can do for a charcuterie board. So many different meats, cheeses, fruits, and more can be used. Maybe add some mixed nuts or dried fruits to the board. Even melted chocolate to dip the fruit into. I went with what my husband and I like to snack on.
What is a charcuterie board?
As I mentioned, a charcuterie board is just a fancy way of making a snack tray of food. It is typically made with cured meats, different types of cheeses, crackers, and a few other items like nuts, fresh fruit, or chocolate candy. They are made in different sizes depending on how m
any you are serving, and the event or holiday you are making the grazing boards for.
What kind of board should I use in making a charcuterie board?
The board you will use will be the centerpiece of your table. A cutting board, serving tray, wooden platter, or even a marble slab would all make a beautiful board. I chose to use a wooden tree plank that has been treated to use with food.
Ingredients
- 8-ounce block of cheddar cheese
- 8-ounce block of pepper jack cheese
- 40 slices of pepperoni
- Crackers
- Valentine’s Conversation Hearts
- Heart-shaped chocolates (I used Dove, removed wrappers)
- Valentine’s M&M candies
- Fresh Raspberries
- small heart-shaped cookie cutter (I used the smallest one from this set)
- wooden cutting board
How to Make a Valentine’s Charcuterie Board with Pepperoni Roses
How to cut cheese into heart-shapes
Step 1
Slice your blocks of cheese in half lengthwise so you have two thinner rectangular blocks.
Step 2
Use a small heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut hearts into the blocks of cheese. You can use the scraps for another recipe, or just eat them. No judgment.
How to make the pepperoni roses
Step 1
Using a shot glass to hold the meat slices in place, press the pepperoni slice on the rim of the glass, half inside and half outside the glass.
Step 2
Add the next slice of pepperoni halfway over that one, then repeat that process with more pepperoni slices. You will use 10 slices total per meat rose
Note: be sure to push the slices against the inside and outside of the shot glass, this will help keep the roses formed and easily removed to your board.
For the rest of the grazing board
Step 1
Arrange the crackers onto your board, starting from the top left, then stacking down on an angle, 1-2 inches from the bottom right corner. I chose to use small rectangular crackers, but feel free to use your favorite.
Step 2
Place a pepperoni rose above and below the crackers, in the center of your line of crackers. If you pressed the pepperoni slices together as in the direction above, your pepperoni rose will stay together.
Step 3
Arrange cheddar cheese hearts above the crackers, to the right of the pepperoni rose to help hold it in place. Do the same with the pepper jack cheese to the left of the bottom rose.
Step 4
The Conversation Hearts go under the pepperoni rose at the bottom and to the right until you meet the crackers. Add another pepperoni rose under the cheddar cheese hearts, against the crackers.
Step 5
Fill the bottom corner of the board with the chocolate hearts (under the pepperoni rose). Place the raspberries all around the cheddar cheese hearts, meeting at the pepperoni roses, and also to the left of the pepper jack cheese, filling in that left side.
Step 6
Place the M&Ms above and next to the top rose, and above the chocolate hearts. Then, add the final pepperoni rose to the top right corner.
How do you eat meat roses?
Easy! Lift off and eat one “rose petal” at a time from the center of the meat flowers.
Tips, Tricks, and FAQs
- You can use strawberries in place of raspberries. Create a heart-shaped strawberry by cutting the top off in a “V” shape.
- Make Salami roses can be used in place of pepperoni. Check out other similar deli meats to use, too.
- Are your cheese hearts too thick? Easy fix. Slice the blocks of cheese into thirds. Bonus tip for this: take the blocks of cheese to the deli in your grocery store and ask them to slice it for you.
- Any heart-shaped chocolate candy can be used in place of the Dove chocolates. White chocolate would be wonderful as well.
- Not a conversation heart fan? Replace with other fun Valentine’s Day candy, or replace with cashews, pistachios, honey-roasted peanuts, walnuts, pecans, or almonds.
- Add some cookies and this Valentine’s Cheesecake Dip
- Always make sure you have items placed all the way to the very edges of your board.
Other Valentine’s Day recipes you may enjoy
- Chocolate Cake Mix Donuts
- Valentine’s Day Popcorn
- Sweet and Savory Valentine’s Day grazing board
- Hard Cinnamon Candy
- Valentine’s M&M Cookie Bars
Printable Valentine’s Charcuterie Board with Pepperoni Roses Recipe
Valentine’s Charcuterie Board with Pepperoni Roses
Equipment
- small heart shaped cookie cutter
- wooden cutting board
Ingredients
- 8 ounce block of cheddar cheese
- 8 ounce block of pepper jack cheese
- 40 slices pepperoni
- crackers
- Valentine's Conversation Hearts
- heart-shaped chocolates (like Dove)
- Valentine's M&M candies
- fresh Raspberries
Instructions
How to cut cheese into heart-shapes
- Slice your blocks of cheese in half lengthwise so you have two thinner rectangular blocks.
- Use the heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut hearts into the blocks of cheese.
How to make the pepperoni roses
- Using a shot glass to hold the meat slices in place, pressthe pepperoni slice on the rim, half inside and half outside the glass
- Add the next slice of pepperoni halfway over that one, then repeat that process with more pepperoni slices. You will use 10 slices total per rose.
- Note: be sure to push the slices against the inside and outside of the shot glass, this will help keep the roses formed and easily removed to your board.
For the rest of the grazing board
- Arrange the crackers onto your board, starting from the top left, then stacking down on an angle, 1-2 inches from the bottom right corner. I chose to use small rectangular crackers, but feel free to use your favorite.
- Place a pepperoni rose above and below the crackers, in the center of your line of crackers. If you pressed the pepperoni slices together as in the direction above, your pepperoni rose will stay together.
- Arrange cheddar cheese hearts above the crackers, to the right of the pepperoni rose to help hold it in place. Do the same with the pepper jack cheese to the left of the bottom rose.
- The Conversation Hearts go under the pepperoni rose at the bottom and to the right until you meet the crackers. Add another pepperoni rose under the cheddar cheese hearts, against the crackers.
- Fill the bottom corner of the board with the chocolate hearts (under the pepperoni rose). Place the raspberries all around the cheddar cheese hearts, meeting at the pepperoni roses, and also to the left of the pepper jack cheese, filling in that left side.
- Place the M&Ms above and next to the top rose, and above the chocolate hearts. Then, add the final pepperoni rose to the top right corner.
Notes
- You can use strawberries in place of raspberries. Create a heart-shaped strawberry by cutting the top off in a “V” shape.
- Salami can be used in place of pepperoni to make the meat roses.
- Are your cheese hearts too thick? Easy fix. Slice the blocks of cheese into thirds. Bonus tip for this: take the blocks of cheese to the deli in your grocery store and ask them to slice it for you.
- Any heart-shaped chocolate candy can be used in place of the Dove chocolates. White chocolate would be wonderful as well.
- Not a conversation heart fan? Replace with other fun Valentine’s Day candy, or replace with cashews, pistachios, honey-roasted peanuts, walnuts, pecans, or almonds.
- Add some cookies and this Valentine’s Cheesecake Dip
- Always make sure you have items placed all the way to the very edges of your board.
Happy Valentine’s Day, my friends!
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