Mediterranean Charcuterie Board with Walnut and Sun Dried Tomato Pesto

I contend that a good charcuterie board is like the proverbial little black dress.  Except that it isn’t black.  But it is versatile beyond belief.

This post has been sponsored by Mastro® and San Daniele® and their fabulous new Mediterranean Charcuterie Trio Mediterranean Flavours Deli.

When I started thinking about this post, I was taken back to when Jim and I were first married.  We were having friends over for a totally impromptu evening, and I had planned absolutely nothing for dinner.  I wasn’t even sure what was in the fridge.  But we ran home to get there before our friends, so that I could see if there was something edible, or else it would be a delivery pizza evening.

Well, as I started looking through the fridge and pantry, something started happening.  I pulled out jars of tuna, artichoke hearts, pickled mushrooms, olives, pickles, deli meats, veggies, sardines, crackers, cheeses, and even a half used up jar of la Bomba!  On their own none of these items would satisfy a starving group.  But when put together, and it turned into a fun and casual evening of chatting around the coffee table.  You see, this happened at a time before ‘charcuterie board’ was a household term.  I kind of looked at it as a sort of simplified Salade Niçoise.  That evening, one of the girls said to me, “I would never have thought of taking all the bits from the fridge and putting them all onto one platter like this, but I love it!  There’s no pressure to this kind of entertaining.  Thanks for giving me the confidence to do it myself!”  And that’s exactly what I was thinking as well!  No cooking, nothing to mess up.  It’s really just a matter of opening jars and containers, spreading stuff out, and letting everyone help themselves.  Just add wine!

To this day, when someone asks me what I always have in the pantry, I will give them a list that includes much of what was in my kitchen that evening all those years ago.  Along with the staples, always have jars of olives, pickles, sardines, tuna fillet, artichoke hearts, pickled veggies, etc.  Have various crackers so that if you don’t have fresh bread, it won’t be a problem.  Ideally have a bit of deli meat and cheese in the fridge.  Or at least some eggs that you can hard boil!  Put them all together, and life is good.

Going regional with your boards kind of takes it to the next level.  And it does mean that you may actually be planning your board for a special occasion.  But it’s worth doing the research, because along the way you may just discover all sorts of new dishes and ingredients.  Whether it is a Northern Euro board (very Scandi with all sorts of smørrebrød, pickled herring etc), Middle Eastern with all the dips and flatbreads we love, or even African or Asian influenced, these boards can be so very festive.  And since there is always something for everyone, friends and guests love seeing a great board spread out in front of them.

So let’s make a Mediterranean one today!!

Thanks to Mastro® and San Daniele®, I have today’s meats taken care of.  I love being able to pick up a ready made variety of deli meats for sandwiches or charcuterie boards, and this new Mediterranean trio from Mastro® and San Daniele® is perfect.  I’m totally hooked on San Daniele Mortadella® (it is in my fridge pretty well every week).  Everyone loves a Prosciutto, so there are smoked Prosciutto slices in this new trio.  A fabulous Chorizo Salami pays tribute to Spain, and the Salami with Prosciutto mix version is a great one to nibble on as well.  Mastro® and San Daniele® have done all the thinking for us; if we aren’t sure which meats to add to a winning board, no worries, they’re all accounted for here in this handy trio.  And these meats go so well with a variety of cheeses, breads, spreads and veggies.

So what should be placed around the meats? Since we’re keeping to a Mediterranean theme, we pretty well have anything that Spain, Portugal, the south of France, Italy and Greece have to offer.  So let your imagination run wild.  For cheeses how about a Manchego from Spain, a Camembert from France, a Gorgonzola, Provolone or Parmesan from Italy, or of course a briny Feta from Greece?  Any or all of the above! For all the fun canned and jarred accoutrements, go for a good tuna in oil, sardines, artichoke hearts, pickled mushrooms, olives, or pepperoncini.

We can surround all of the above with great veggies.  How about boiled and cooled mini potatoes (a la Patates Bravas from Spain), canned or jarred green beans (like on a good Salade Niçoise), sliced tomatoes, fennel, cucumbers, radishes, caper berries etc.  Or how about some mini arancini (fried Italian rice balls), stuffed grape leaves, or even roasted red peppers?

Of course, you’ll want some great breads to create your nibbles with.  Focaccia, schiacciata, ciabatta, baguette, even pita are all authentically Mediterranean.  

And for dips and spreads, go for la Bomba, a fantastic chilli pepper antipasto spread (I put it on everything!) an olive oil dip of sorts, mustards, tapenade etc all work great.  And I’m even going to share one of our favourites right now:  Walnut and Sun Dried Tomato Pesto.  This is a great spread on bread under meats and veggies, or even on its own with a layer of cheese on top.  It is so easy to make.  All you will need is walnut halves, lemon juice, chilli flakes, garlic, sun dried tomatoes, and olive oil.  It’s really just a matter of blending them all together and then adding the chopped tomato slices and olive oil at the end.  You can add as much olive oil as you want.  Do you want a thicker spread, go with less.  Do you have leftover pesto that you want to add to spaghetti, add a bit more oil!!  The recipe will be below.

What makes this meal fabulous, is that it is truly year round.  You can get absolutely every ingredient all through the year, and in your local grocery store, from the fresh deli counter for the Mastro® and San Daniele® deli meats to the condiments aisle for the jars of pickled veggies and tuna.  So whether you are sharing this charcuterie board out on the patio with Prosecco, or inside in front of a roaring fire and red wine, it will always be a hit with everyone.  And really, it does feel like a healthy way to spend an evening! 😉

Right now, if you’re in Canada and want a great deal on the Mastro® and San Daniele® Charcuterie Trio Mediterranean Flavours, click on the link right here!

For today, we’re all turning Mediterranean.  It’s supposed to be the ultimate way to eat, right?  Well, here you go.  You’re welcome! hehe.

Love Jen

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Walnut and Sun Dried Tomato Pesto

An earthy Mediterranean inspired pesto that works equally well as a condiment on a charcuterie or cheese board, or even thinned out as a pasta sauce!

Course Condiment

Prep Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup walnut halves
• 1/4 cup grated fresh parmesan cheese
• 1 medium garlic clove coarsely chopped
• 3 tsp fresh thyme leaves
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp chilli flakes or to taste, you can start with less
• 2 tsp lemon juice use freshly squeezed please
• 1/4-1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp chopped sun dried tomatoes that have been softened in boiling water for 5-10 minutes
• kosher salt
• fresh cracked black pepper

Instructions

1. Scatter the walnut halves on a baking sheet and toast in a 350 oven for 8-10 minutes. They should be fragrant but not scorched. Let them cool down.

2. Place the cooled walnut halves, the parmesan, garlic, thyme, oregano and lemon juice into a food processor and whiz until chopped down into a medium coarse texture. There shouldn't be any large pieces of walnut left. Just imagine what you would want to spread on bread. Just don't blend into a paste. Rough is rustic, and is a good thing.

3. Place the mixture into a medium sized bowl,.

4. Add 1/4 cup of the olive oil, as well as the chopped softened sun dried tomatoes. Stir to blend well. If you want it a bit thinner, add the rest of the olive oil.

5. Taste and season with the salt and pepper. Start with 1/2 tsp of each.

Recipe Notes

This works great as a spread on tartines or baguettes. As a dip for toasted pita bread chips.

And if you have any left over, use it as an amazing pasta sauce! Cook up some pasta, saving some of the pasta water in a small cup, when it is tender. Drain and toss with the sauce in the same pot. Add some of the pasta water to thin out the pesto and allow everything to be looser and easier to serve. You can then drizzle with a bit more olive oil and top with more parmesan cheese. Great dinner!