Around the Board

This is a beautiful book if you're like me and can't get enough of looking at different board spreads! The photos are beautiful and clear. I would have liked more pictures of the breakdown to build a board (the picnic box was the BEST) but I found the pairing notes super helpful, and the creative designs inspiring.

BE Inspired! This book by Emily Delaney has changed the way I see appetizers and meals made up of fruit, cheese and crackers. I was interested in this book because my sister has gotten into creating boards at our family get togethers. And now I can build a board too. This book would be a great gift along with a board or some really cute containers to put on a board.
The combinations of cheese, meat, fruit and nuts that Emily uses are amazing and look really appetizing. The presentations on the boards are just beautiful. Color is used to really enhance each board, It makes me want to get a board and start building.
The organization of the book is by season and each season starts out with a list of potential items available during that season. There are boards for every holiday, for movie night, for picnics and everything in between.
Emily shares rules for how much meat and cheese to plan for depending on the number of people you will be feeding. Which really would help you know how much to buy and how much to put on the board.
The photos are just beautiful and also have a purpose - they show you how to build the board with the items recommended for that board. The first photo shows the board ready to serve. The second picture shows the board labeled so you know what is at each spot on the board.
There are recipes in the book for dips, dipped fruit, jam, etc. There are descriptions of cheeses and meats and how to use them. Some I have heard of and others I have never tried. There are pairings for wine and beer. There is a shopping list for each board divided up into cheese, meat, produce, crunch and accouterments. If there is something on the list you cannot find or do not like, then you could use the seasonal list at the beginning of that season and pick something else.

This book is beautiful! The photography is stunning, and I love how informative the book is about the different components that go on a cheese board. Would totally recommend for a gift!

Pros: With charcuterie boards being all the go, I got many ideas from this book for what to serve when I next host book club or for when I have friends and family over for holidays. I love that this book was organized by seasons and holidays—who doesn’t love a themed board! The photographs in this book are incredibly helpful for people like me who have a hard time knowing how to arrange things on the board—I might not be able to come up with the idea on my own, but I can follow a photo as a guide. My favorite thing about this book is how practical it is—it provides guidance on how to build a board, helpful pairing guides, and shopping lists.

Cons: None that I can think of!

Thank you to NetGalley and DK, Alpha for the opportunity to read this book.

This is an incredible resource for the Charcuterie lovers!! I consider myself an expert charcuterie queen and I learned so many amazing tips and tricks from this book. I can't wait to use the shopping lists as I imagine my own special occasion boards.

I loved the way she broke down the steps of many of the features, included recipes for elevating the cheese to new levels and all of the tips around wine and beer pairing as well.

This is by far the best book the topic that I have read. I need to have this in my personal collection.

I love that this book goes beyond recipes and gives you pairings ideas for your cheeses. This works great if you want to substitute something you do not like. I also like that there are complex boards but also some more simple pairings.

I loved this book. The boards are broken down into seasons so you can always have fresh produce and products. The author for sure is the Board Queen.

The pictures are beautiful and I’m excited to try so many of these boards throughout the year.

I am SO inspired by these artful, colorful creations! I enjoy creating simple boards for family and friends, but this book provides the inspiration to step up my game.

I love that the boards are broken out into seasons with lists of common ingredients best found/used for that season. Each board has a picture and a brief description, but the most useful tool for me is how to build the board, step by step. Each ingredient is given a number and the picture shows the corresponding number…you cannot mess this up! For non-creatives like me, this is exactly the type of tool to get me started. Desserts, appetizers, main meals, parties and holidays are all covered. There is even a helpful discussion on which beverages best compliment the board and the ingredients chosen. Cheeses and meats are explained as well as how to pair and style. The photos are just as inspiring as the dish being served. Emily Delaney’s Around the Board is an incredibly useful book in any kitchen that enjoys creating colorful, expressive, and tasteful food boards.
I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are solely my own, freely given.

Using boards/platters to serve food both at home for you family and when your entertaining is a fun way to be fun and creative with food. This particular book shows the best way to plan your boards by using foods that are currently in season. There are also different theme boards presented such as, my favorite, the dessert board!

This book surpassed my expectations by far and I can't wait to create charcuterie boards with tips and tricks I learned from this book! It is such a beautiful book filled with gorgeous photos that make you want to start building your own charcuterie boards and shows easy how-tos with ingredients that are readily available at most grocery supermarkets.

It has four chapters by season and each chapter has different themes/celebrations, and every single one of them is a very doable board using various ingredients. It is very colorful, so it pleases your eyes, and I can't imagine why it wouldn't please your palates just the way it does your eyes! All the recipes are creative, fun, unique, and look delightful and I have no doubt they will be the center of attention whether it's just for a family gathering or a big celebration or a party. I have enjoyed this book so much and will gift this to close family and friends!

Around the Board is a well written and beautifully illustrated guide to charcuterie and cheese boards by Emily Delaney. Due out 29th March 2022 from Penguin Random House on their DK imprint, it's 192 pages and will be available in hardcover and ebook formats.

DK's dependability with nonfiction is well documented. They're really good with illustrated how-to guides and this one is no exception. The author presents a comprehensive general introduction full of basic instructions on how to make boards, how to choose ingredients, how to serve them and more. The introduction is followed by seasonal specialty servings (Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall) full of appropriate and attractive food, well curated and presented.

The book is full to bursting with useful tables and choices; showing what cheese goes with which fruit and showing readers how to pair ingredients to show them at their best. I'm generally fairly clueless about *what* will complement *which* and I felt that the information contained here gave me enough confidence to make a somewhat educated choice as far as arrangement and choices. Not just enough with specific advice about which types of cheese and meat to provide, the author goes a step further and shows how to slice, fold, and prepare meats and cheeses so that they're accessible and portable for serving.

Each of the specific board tutorials in the book contains an introduction, a bullet point shopping list, a tutorial for building the recipe, (with ingredients on a color photo showing how to build it), and suggestions for pairings of food for flavor and texture. All the photos in the book are large, high contrast, and in color, without hands or anything in the way.

Many of the ingredients will be easy to find at any large supermarket or box-store. Some of the more specialized cheeses and charcuterie will require mail order or access to a large urban area, or specialist grocer. Serving suggestions are beautifully styled and attractive (it's the high point of the book for me).

Five stars. This would make a great choice for library acquisition, for the home cook, or possibly as a thoughtful hostess gift.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

5 delicious, beautiful, every-occasion stars for this amazing charcuterie cookbook and guide!

Thank you to NetGalley and DK, Alpha for providing a digital ARC for review!

This charcuterie cookbook and guide is absolutely gorgeous. It is filled with boards and spreads for every holiday or occasion you could possibly think of, from Christmas to Game Day. Delaney also guides the reader with charcuterie tools, pairings, and displays for each type of board.

These spreads all look so delicious and almost like a work of edible art. These boards are not entirely savory either by the way - I'm particularly excited over the Valentine's day and other sweets spreads that feature chocolate fondue!

I recommend this to the charcuterie lover or friend who loves to entertain.

I've read, cooked, and reviewed A LOT of books about boards and building them. What makes this one stand out particularly is how Emily shows you how to build that board, just the way she has it pictured. I've built a lot of boards/tried to make them pretty like the picture, and sometimes it works out. With her guide, it looks that way every single time. I also like how each season is broken out and includes a pantry for each season. Making "The Boardament" was really fun and one I will do again for Christmas. The snow day fondue board was really fun- we did it on a particularly crummy day and it made it really enjoyable. Ever wonder how they make salami roses and perfect proscuitto crinkles? Look no further. Emily has you covered. This is a very enjoyable book and one that is particularly good for beginners or those looking to have photo worthy boards that they don't have to try to figure out.

Yes - get it.

I happened to compare two charcuterie books at the same time. This was by far and away the better resource for doing boards.

I like that with a few exception, it mainly was charcuterie. It wasn't just prettily presented food. I think there is a science behind charcuterie. I loved the different seasonal boards and each one fulfilled that basic definition of what charcuterie is.

I received an ARC from Netgalley to help me prepare my honest review.

This book is beautiful and should be displayed! I love the gorgeous photos and layouts and just everything about this book! I love making and photographing food and boards and this book was right up my alley!

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy of this book!

First words that come to mind when I started looking through "Around the board" was whimsical and beautiful. I usually like all cookbooks I review, but this one really knocks it out of the park! The images do not do it justice as an ebook. Seeing these artful boards in glossy pages would make the best addition for any coffee table. The colors of every board are so eye catching and pleasing. The description of common charcuterie meats and cheeses is thorough for any novice. The categorization of seasonal boards was something I never would have thought of. The creativity and pictures of this book are amazing. I will for sure buy more than one copy, as it would make a great hostess gift!

Emily Delaney has produced a delightfully delicious guide to creating scrumptious boards for all times of the year. "Around the Board" is structured around season eating and provides boards geared to holidays and seasonal additions available throughout the year. If you are an adult who is a fan of snacking and beautiful displays this book is for you! I personally have found myself overwhelmed by charcuterie boards but the way they are presented in "Around the Board" I feel like I could make something tasty and delicious. I for one will definitely be trying out the Caprese board this summer when tomatoes are back in season! Happy arranging!

Charcuterie boards are the latest craze, and there are already hundreds of cookbooks out showcasing them. Around the Board: Boards, Platters, and Plates: Seasonal Cheese and Charcuterie for Year-Round Celebrations and Elevated Gatherings is one such cookbook. The cookbook is divided up into seasons rather than traditional chapters. This makes it more useful for those who like to make seasonal boards. It isn’t filled with just charcuterie (the actual definition of charcuterie is sausages, ham, pâtés, and other cooked or processed meats, or a delicatessen serving them), but also cheese and fruit boards as well as dessert boards.

Included for each board is a list of suggestions to add to the board, as well as pairings that work and most importantly, a beautiful photograph. According to Delaney, each board should include 5 items: cheese, crunch, meat, accoutrements, and produce. She has used a very vivid imagination to create beautiful , mouthwatering, and luscious boards throughout the year and on special holidays. Each board includes a shopping list, which, since there is very little cooking involved in these boards, is very helpful.

Even though there are books being released daily on the subject of boards, this one is recommended because it is easy to read, straightforward, and includes enough ideas to make anyone a star when using Delaney’s ideas. This is definitely an excellent book for anyone wanting to entertain with boards.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.