Thanksgiving Turkey Cheese Plate
Serve a plate or board of olives, meat, cheese, crackers, and a pear made into the shape of a turkey, for a Thanksgiving Turkey Cheese Plate!
Friends, looking for a last-minute cheese plate to serve for Thanksgiving? If you have run out of time and need a quick “put together” meat and cheese plate, then this recipe is for you! You can make a board or something larger, on The Big Board. Last year we served this Mr. Tom Turkey Board. Or, you can serve a Meat Cheese Charcuteriei Board.
Thanksgiving Turkey Cheese Plate
This Thanksgiving Turkey Cheese Plate is a nourishing, healthy, festive snack to make for your holiday gathering! It can be made with common lunch food like sliced deli ham, turkey, and cheese. Here I add some special touches like herbs, bay leaf, baby corn, and antipasti olive mix, but you can use whatever you have on hand! Other fruits like apples and persimmons would be delicious to add, as well as other cheeses.
Ingredients for a cheese plate for Thanksgiving
- Bay leaves
- Cheddar cheese
- Trader Joe’s Spanish Cheese Sampler
- Olive mix (we used Delallo’s antipasti olive mix because it has red peppers)
- Salami slices
- Scallop crackers
- Baby corn: buy in a jar and drain before using
- Rosemary ham: use a soft, deli ham that is easy to roll
- Turkey breast: use a soft, deli turkey that is easy to roll
- Bartlett pear: fresh, whole pear
- The face of the turkey:
- Dried blueberries (for eyes): we bought at Trader Joe’s
- Baby corn tip for beak (or other small triangular food item)
- Raw honey (or crystalized honey) for placing the eyes and beak on the turkey
- Rosemary sprigs for garnish
How to make a cheese plate with a pear (for the turkey)
- Slice a pear in half and lay one half aside. The other half, remove the seeds and slice into long pieces. Leave the skin on the pear.
- Gather the cheese board ingredients and prepare (cut the cheese into long triangle pieces, roll the meat, drain the olives, remove the crackers from the package, etc.)
- Build the plate by placing the crackers around the outside, to make the “feathers” of a turkey. Leave room at the bottom for the pear half and the drained olives.
- Layering on top of the crackers, add the rolled turkey and ham, baby corn, and cheese slices, and pear slices—fanned out to make the turkey feathers.
- Place a piece of meat at the bottom and lay the pear half on top (to make the turkey body).
- Arrange the drained olives under the pear, at the bottom of the plate, to make the feet, and up around the body of the pear.
- Put 2 dried blueberries on the pear to make the turkey eyes. Cut off one of the tips of the baby corn, to make the turkey nose. Use honey to make the eyes and nose stick.
- Add in several bay leaves and rosemary sprigs for garnish and serve!
Why we love a cheese platter
It’s fun to serve a holiday cheese platter for appetizers before the main meal. Everyone always comes starving and needing a quick nosh before diving into the big turkey meal. We love to set out The Big Board, but for a smaller group, you can also make a cheese plate.
More Thanksgiving cheese boards to try:
Thanksgiving Cheese Board (a larger one on The Big Board)
Another cute Turkey Shaped Cheese Board
Get the Recipe:
Thanksgiving Turkey Cheese Plate
Ingredients
- 3-4 bay leaves
- Sliced cheddar, cut into triangles
- 1 Trader Joe’s Spanish Cheese Sampler
- Olive mix, we used Delallo’s antipasti mix because it has small red pepper pieces
- 16 salami slices
- 16 scallop crackers
- Baby corn
- 6 oz rosemary ham
- 6 oz turkey breast
- 1 Bartlett pear, halved, one half cut into wedges (the other left whole for the body)
The face of the turkey:
- 2 dried blueberries, for eyes
- Baby corn tip for beak, or other small triangular food item
- Raw honey, or crystalized honey for placing the eyes and beak on the turkey
- Rosemary sprigs for garnish
Instructions
- Slice a pear in half and lay one half aside. The other half, remove the seeds and slice into long pieces. Leave the skin on the pear.
- Gather the cheese board ingredients and prepare (cut the cheese into long triangle pieces, roll the meat, drain the olives, remove the crackers from the package, etc.)
- Build the plate by placing the crackers around the outside, to make the “feathers” of a turkey. Leave room at the bottom for the pear half and the drained olives.
- Layering on top of the crackers, add the rolled turkey and ham, baby corn, and cheese slices, and pear slices—fanned out to make the turkey feathers.
- Place a piece of meat at the bottom and lay the pear half on top (to make the turkey body).
- Place the drained olives under the pear, at the bottom of the plate, to make the feet, and up around the body of the pear.
- Place 2 dried blueberries on the pear to make the turkey eyes. Cut off one of the tips of the baby corn, to make the turkey nose. Use honey to make the eyes and nose stick.
- Add in several bay leaves and rosemary sprigs for garnish and serve!
Hello and welcome to my home and table!
I’m Sandy—lover of food, family, cooking, THE BIG BOARD, travel, and bringing people together. Through great recipes and connection around the table, we become better, stronger, and more courageous people. Feasting on Life is real, and every time we do it, we grow a little more. Read more...
