A Butter Board

Have you heard of a butter board? In our opinion, these are better than a cheese board, a charcuterie board, or any other board we have ever seen. In this post, we will show you A Butter Board for your next date night, girl’s night, or any gathering.

We came across this viral video on TikTok shared by Justine Snacks and thought it was brilliant. The original concept is by Josh McFadden, but this is our modern take on it.

Before you start

• A butter board is a platter topped with softened butter and various toppings, served with fresh bread.
• This dish offers rich flavors with ingredients like flakey sea salt, figs, and hot honey, making it a crowd-pleaser.
• You can customize your butter board by using spreadable cheese or making it vegan with plant-based alternatives.
• Serve warm, crusty bread alongside your butter board for an ideal pairing at gatherings.
• Prepare the butter ahead of time and add toppings just before serving for the best presentation.

What is a Butter Board?

A butter board is a serving platter covered in softened butte r and toppings of your choice. It is served with slices of fresh bread and it’s meant to be enjoyed as a self-serve topping for bread. A butter board is an alternative to a cheese board: it has rich dairy, different textures, and colors. It can be served as an appetizer; it’s grazing food to enjoy casually with a glass of wine. Using beautiful toppings, such as fresh, vibrant fruits and herbs, you can present a board that is both stunning.

What stands out

Our butter board is decorated with elite ingredients. This version has flakey sea salt, fresh figs, fig preserve, walnuts for crunch, and hot honey for a little bit of spice. These flavors slathered on a fresh piece of bread will have you and your guests begging for more.

This butter board is suited to a large gathering or party. You can serve it with lots of fresh bread on the side and individual butter knives for each guests. Bring this to a party, and we can guarantee it is going to be the most show-stopping dish of the night. This board serves 10+ people so feel free to adjust depending on the size you’re entertaining.

Swaps

There are so many ways to personalize a butter board, including some of these ideas:

• Instead of butter, feel free to use a creamy, spreadable cheese like Boursin. Check out our Goat Cheese Board recipe.
• You can also make this board totally vegan by using a plant-based spreadable cheese or butter, and using agave instead of honey.
• If you don’t havehot honey you can use regular honey, make our Hot Honey recipe, or mix honey with chili flakes.
• You can also use crushed or candied pistachios, hazelnuts, almonds, or any nuts you love.
• In addition to or instead of lemon zest you can also use lime or orange zest.
• Dress up your board for the winter holidays, by using vibrant fruit spreads and pomegranate seeds. Check out our full Holiday Butter Board recipe.

Kitchen tip

Soft, room temperature butter is easiest to spread. Use any board you have: a plate, a clean cutting board, etc.

Serve it with

• Warm, sliced crusty bread is a must alongside a butter board. A fresh baguette is the choice.
• Try our incredibly straightforward recipe for No Knead Bread (or the Gluten Free Version).
• You could also serve this board with pita bread cut into triangles and warmed for a few minutes in the oven.
• For straightforward entertaining, serve this board as a starter, followed by a light and refreshing salad, such as our Fennel and Cherry Salad or Simple Green Salad.

Questions

Why do you suggest lining the serving board with parchment paper?

Cutting boards, especially wood ones, can retain contaminants and germs, even after a thorough washing. To prevent cross-contamination with whatever was previously prepared on the board, use parchment paper to line it.

Can we make this vegan?

Absolutely! You can use vegan butter or a vegan, spreadable cheese and use agave syrup instead of honey.

Can we make this board ahead of time?

You can line your board in parchment and spread the softened butter across the parchment the night before serving. Store in the refrigerator, and then add the toppings at the last minute, before serving.

Is this recipe gluten-free?

There are no ingredients in the recipe that contain gluten. However, to keep things fully gluten-free, serve with gluten-free bread or crackers.

What kind of knives do you recommend using for serving?

We like to put out a small butter knife for each guest. We love mark these small knives.

What Should i serve a butter board with?

Warm sliced bread is a must! We recommend our recipe for strong a No Knead Bread (or the strong a Gluten Free Version).

Ingredients

Makes 10 people

• 2 sticks butter, salted or unsalted, softened
• fresh lemon zest
• flaky sea salt
• fig preserve, a few dollops
• 2 fresh figs, cut into round slices
• ¼ cup crushed walnuts
• hot honey, or regular honey, for drizzling
• fresh herbs or edible flowers, for presentation (I used lemon thyme)
• fresh bread, for serving

Equipment

• Small Cutting Board
• Butter Knives
• Zester
• Parchment Paper

Method

1. Line a serving or cutting board in parchment paper. Smear the softened butter onto the parchment. Make it look presentable and layer in swirls on the serving board.
2. Sprinkle on the salt and lemon zest; measure everything with your heart. We take our knife and dollop on the fig preserve, add our fig slices and drizzle on hot honey. Add the crushed walnuts and garnish with lemon thyme, herbs of choice, or edible flowers. Serve with fresh bread and enjoy.

Kitchen notes

• Get Figgy with it: Fig preserves are like fig jam, but made with less sugar. Jarred fig preserves can often be found near the specialty cheeses in a grocery store. You can also use any kind of jam you like, but preserves are ideal because they are less sweet and more savory. Lemon preserves or an onion jam would also work well here.
• Texture and Color: The key to a stunning butter board is lots of texture and color. Fresh herbs and edible flowers add so much beauty and flavor. Some of our favorites: rosemary, oregano, thyme, or tarragon.
• Flakey Salt: We love the crunch and elegance that flakey salt brings to a dish. We always use a bit of flakey salt to garnish a butter board, even if we're also using salted butter. You can also use a salt seasoning blend. Some blends even include herbs or dried flowers, which add flavor and color to the dish.