New Year's Eve Charcuterie Board with Bacon Wrapped Pears and Blackberry Champagne Cocktail

You guys. 2020 is finally coming to a close. Anyone else feel like this year has gone by really quickly and super slow all at the same time? What. A. Year. I'm looking into 2021 with a lot of hope for a better year.

This year, we are choosing to stay inside and enjoy a quiet NYE, but that doesn't mean we can't still celebrate and do something special. Nothing says cozy like a charcuterie board date night by the fire, so I put together a charcuterie board but added a couple of twists that make it unique. I chose to add in a quick and easy appetizer to my board - bacon wrapped pears with goat cheese and a drizzle of honey. I also added some blackberry compote on top of the brie and sprinkled it with pomegranates and chopped rosemary. To ring in the new year, I made a blackberry champagne cocktail that also utilizes some of the blackberry compote and a splash of Grand Marnier and Brandy. 

I know building a charcuterie board can feel daunting, so I'll walk you through some steps I take when creating my boards and also include the recipes for the pears, compote, and cocktail.

Cheers to a new year, friends!!

Step 1 - Choose Your Cheeses

I always choose 3-4 different types of cheese and I like a variety of hard cheese, soft cheese, herbed cheese, and smoked cheese or other flavor. So for this board I chose brie, smoked gouda, herbed goat cheese, rosemary and olive oil asisago, and a cheddar with some chilies in it for a bit of a kick. 

Step 2 - Choose Your Meats

I always select 3 meats to go with the cheese. Usually prosciutto, salami, and some summer sausage. You can also spice it up a bit by getting pepper crusted salami or something fun. 

Step 3 - Choose Your Crackers

I like to get 2-3 different types of crackers to compliment the cheese and meat. I choose a variety of thin, thick, herbed and plain. For this board, I selected a multigrain cracker and a plain water cracker. 

Step 4 - Choose Your Add-Ins

To me, this is the fun part. These can be a variety of things and it's where I like to be creative. I choose a variety of fruits, jams, marmalades, olives, nuts, etc. For this particular board, I selected black grapes, blackberries, fig jam, quince jam, boozed cherries, olives, and a nut mix that included chocolate and dried cranberries.

If you want to take your board to the next level, add in a fun appetizer and top the brie with something delicious. You can find the recipes for my bacon wrapped pears and blackberry compote below!

Bacon Wrapped Pears with Goat Cheese & Honey

Ingredients: 

• 4 pears
• 8 teaspoons goat cheese
• 8 strips maple bacon
• 4 teaspoons honey
• fresh rosemary for sprinkling

Directions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. 
2. Cut pears in half and core them.
3. Fill each pear with goat cheese and wrap with maple bacon. Cover a baking sheet in foil and place pear halves on baking sheet. Bake in oven for 30 minutes or until pears are soft. 
4. To serve, drizzle with honey and sprinkle fresh rosemary on top. Serve immediately. 

Blackberry Compote

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups fresh blackberries
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• pinch of salt

Directions: 

1. Combine blackberries, sugar, lemon juice, and salt in a saucepan. Toss to coat and let sit for 5 minutes.
2. Bring berry mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until sauce has reduced and thickened slightly, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool slightly.
3. To serve on brie, use a slotted spoon to scoop some blackberries on top. Then using a spoon, drizzle some of the juice on top. Sprinkle pomegranate seeds and fresh chopped rosemary on top.

Blackberry Champagne Cocktail

Ingredients: 

• 1 oz Grand Marnier
• Splash of Brandy
• 1 tsp juice from blackberry compote (recipe above)
• Brut champagne
• Blackberries and thyme sprigs for garnish

Directions: 

1. In a champagne glass, add Grand Marnier, Brandy, and blackberry compote. 
2. Top with champagne and garnish with a couple of blackberries and a sprig of thyme