Holiday Grazing Board

The grazing board trend is here to stay. A delightful way to nibble through an evening with friends, it offers something for everyone, and the palette of options is a treat for the eyes as well. This holiday season, surprise your guests with some unique and lesser-known snacks—some international, some made around the corner—all available locally.

Tablesugar Champagne cheese knives and serving set complement any charcuterie platter, making it easy to share your work with others (or just enjoy yourself ). Available at Graze by Erica in Elkhart, IN. grazebyerica.com

Rosemary crisps from 34° are the perfect support for cheese, offering a bit of crunch and herbal flavor while letting the cheese take the starring role. Available at St. Claire’s Butcher Shoppe in South Bend, IN. stclairsbutchershoppe.com

Smoked mussels from Flagship Specialty Foods and Fish Market in Lakeside, MI, are rich and robustly smoky, delicious alone or on a cracker with cheese and jam. flagship-foods.com

Healthful goji berries, also called wolfberries, are sweet and a bit tart. They are great as a palate cleanser, or on their own or with cheese and meat. Available at Maple City Market in Goshen, IN. maplecitymarket.com

P. & E.’s Bottle Shop behind Patelli’s Pizza in Three Oaks, MI, houses not only a great selection of wines but some stellar snacks to accompany them. Mitica’s Orange Delights are hand-dipped dark chocolate candied oranges from Spain. Bittersweet and nicely chewy, they pair well with a crisp white wine or a light red. pebottleshop.com

Lavender Marcona almonds from Whistle Stop Grocery in Union Pier, MI, are marvels of simplicity and balance: rich, sweet, salty, floral. The lavender notes highlight all the classic cheese board flavors. whistlestopgrocery.com

Mitica’s Peperoncino Taralli from P. & E.’s Bottle Shop in Three Oaks, MI, are a great wine pairing cracker. Crunchy and spicy and fun to eat, the biscuits are made with olive oil and 00 flour in Puglia, Italy. pebottleshop.com

The decadent smoked salmon spread from Flagship Specialty Foods and Fish Market in Lakeside, MI, is creamy with a light smokiness and may be habit forming. Pair with a crisp white wine. flagship-foods.com

Dill gherkins, grapefruit, grapes and vegetables are from Maple City Market in Goshen, IN. maplecitymarket.com

The Wedge cheese shop at the Goshen, IN, farmers market offers a tempting array of flavorful cheeses from around the world, including:

• Istara P’tit Basque, sheep cheese from France
• The Smokin’ Goat, smoked goat cheese from Spain
• Milton Creamery Prairie Breeze Cheddar from Iowa

The Wedge is on Facebook.

Graze by Erica in Elkhart, IN, offers hand-selected jams and preserves, rotated throughout the seasons for freshness. This fig jam brings a sweet layer of flavor to our board. grazebyerica.com

Coppa, also known as gabagool, is a traditional Italian cold cut with a fine marbling of fat, especially loved for its mellow flavor and melt-in-your-mouth texture. Bresaola (center) is a lean, dried, salted beef. Mild and aromatic, with touches of spice, it is excellent with a squeeze of lemon and some olive oil. From Oh Mama’s in South Bend, IN. oh-mammas.square.site

Made by Knott Road Hillside Gardens in Niles, MI, ground cherry jam has a tangy, surprisingly tropical flavor for a Midwest-grown fruit. Find it at the Purple Porch Food Co-op’s Wednesday evening farmers market (5–7pm) in South Bend, IN. Knott Road Hillside Gardens is on Facebook.