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My First Charcuterie Board

Full disclosure: This photo is not the charcuterie board I created. This is a stock photo.

I wish I had taken a photo of the one I made when I hosted book club at my house.

Picture this: three different kinds of cheese—gouda, goat, and brie and two different types of crackers —water and Ritz. Who says it has to be fancy, right?! I also put out little jars of raspberry fruit spread for added sweetness. Then, my board needed fruit, so I washed off some grapes. At first, I picked the grapes off their stems, but then I realized it would look nicer if I put them out in small bunches. It’s a good thing I had more grapes.

I added a bottle of red and a bottle of white wine, and voila…my first charcuterie board was born!

I was proud of myself for a few reasons. First, I wasn’t supposed to host book club that night, but my friend who was going to host had COVID. (We missed you!) I happily volunteered to host instead, but I didn’t have much time to plan what to serve. I knew I could find some things at Fresh Market, and it turned out to be a fun shopping experience. I loved checking out the cheese section, the different jams and other items I could have selected. In the interest of time and money, I decided to make this one simple. But I still remember the excitement I felt that I could put a nice board together without a ton of work.

Second, I usually depend on my husband to help me decide what to serve and how to arrange it. He is generally in charge of the food when we are entertaining because he has a vision. He knows what to make and how it should be arranged. These things stress me out, so I’m okay leaving it in his capable hands and doing the dishes afterward.

We all have our strengths.

But I climbed out of my comfort zone, and it was a big hit!

Finally, knowing it worked out when I tried something new is refreshing. I’m not always confident in my cooking skills or hosting duties. But I will definitely make a new board soon. It is much more fun to do than the spinach dip I am most known for. I’m happy to make the spinach dip, but there isn’t much variety to it. The boards are a chance to be creative and experiment with new foods. Maybe I’ll add olives, pepperoni slices, or mini quiches next time. The possibilities are endless!

And next time, I’ll remember to take a picture. 🙂

Do you make charcuterie boards? How about those new butter boards? Please leave me some suggestions in the comments. 

XO,

Elisa

Who?!

Before I fall asleep on Saturday nights, I like to watch SNL’s cold open and the host’s monologue. Afterward, I may make it to Weekend Update with Colin Jost and Michael Che, but otherwise, I’ll be asleep before midnight.

Earlier in the day, I looked to see who this week’s host was. It was Jacob Elordi.

Who?! 

I haven’t seen his movie Saltburn or any of his other films. In his monologue, he said he wasn’t good at public speaking (true!), so he took questions from the audience. One person asked him which he preferred, old Elvis or new Elvis.

That’s how I learned he was in a movie about Elvis.

A few weeks ago, I watched the Golden Globes award ceremony. I didn’t care who won the awards. I was in it for the fashion. Since COVID, I haven’t been to the movies much. Because of this, I really have no idea who these people are or what roles they played. Most of them are the same age as my children. Many have been in a Marvel movie that I haven’t seen (nor want to see).

I text photos of the dresses to my sister so we can proclaim our non-expert opinions. Our rating system goes from “GORGEOUS” to “YIKES!”

But the entire time I’m looking at the dresses, I ask myself the same question.

Who is that? 

I’m not entirely hopeless. I saw the Barbie movie. I know who Margot Robbie, America Ferrera, and Dua Lipa are.

And, of course, Ryan Gosling. I never have to ask who he is when I see him on a red carpet or elsewhere.

But unless they are over 40, I usually ask the same question.

Who?!

Still, this doesn’t affect my role as an honorary member of the fashion police. Since I have no opinion of their acting, my judgment calls are 100% unbiased. I also love to compare notes with the experts Tom & Lorenzo: Fabulous and Opinionated to get their take. They are also hilarious!

Not knowing these people also doesn’t ruin SNL for me. The writing on the show does that on its own.

Please tell me I’m not alone here.

XO,

Elisa

Snow stories

mailbox in the snowSnow plow – 1
Mailbox – 0

We had back-to-back snowstorms this week. The first one resulted in about three inches of snow, which isn’t too bad. The roads were pretty covered so we waited until the snow plow came in to clear it.

They cleared more than the road. They took out my mailbox, too. Interestingly, the trash cans went unharmed during this collision. Fortunately, my mail is still being delivered, but it is not easy to retrieve. The mail slides into the back of the box, and I have to reach pretty far in to grab it.

I’m waiting for a call back from the Public Works department to have it replaced. I’m giving them a little grace because today’s snowstorm was worse than the one on Tuesday. I understand if my mailbox is not top of mind for them right now. But I would like a new one soon.

Snow Fall

Dog curled up on the couch with a blanket.This morning, I took Chloe outside to do her business and proceeded to fall right into the snow.

Yes, I was already dressed for a networking call on Zoom at 10:30 am. Yes, I had to dry off and change all of my clothes. ‘

And no, the Ring camera did not record my not-so-graceful fall onto the sidewalk. However, my husband had a front-row seat from his office window. It’s a good thing I wasn’t hurt and found the humor in it all.

As you can see, Chloe felt no remorse whatsoever.

Have a good weekend, everybody. Stay safe and read good books.

XO,

Elisa

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