April 17 will be National Cheese Ball Day: a day to commemorate the delicious cheeseball.
Just recently, a friend needed a hand with a quick catering job, and the client loved cheese. We were scrambling, and I figured, instead of going with a full meal, why not go with a finger foods catered to the cheese. Out came the cheese balls! The next day, to my surprise, there it was: National Cheese Ball Day! And I had an entire tray of leftover cheese balls to enjoy!
There are so many fun and creative finger foods and ideas to use when catering or working with a caterer, like a Cheese Ball Day event. Here are some finger food catering ideas and suggestions for when you throw your own cheese ball party.
Have several types of cheese on hand - not an original idea but something many people forget! Try at least three different types of cheese of varying tastes and textures so everyone can enjoy. I was shocked when I went to a professionally-catered cheese ball event in 2005 that had only Muenster cheese. Ample variety is key.
Variety of crackers - crackers and cheese are one of the simplest finger foods around, and it’s a good idea to have several types of crackers available. I would recommend mixing heavy crackers that add more taste to the cheese with some thinner water crackers for anyone who wants to taste just the cheese.
Cold cut skewers - these fun finger foods are an off-beat trend and a great idea in catering throughout the country. Roasted or grilled kebabs may be overpowering for the cheese and will fill you up very quickly. I’ve noticed many unique catering companies are making beautiful varieties of cubed cold cut skewers from pepper turkey to honey glazed ham. Looks great, tastes even better!
Fruit and veggie plate – a great finger food idea is to always keep a plate of fruits and veggies to cleanse the palette and complement the cheese. Whenever I was on a catering job and needed a plate of cheese and fruit, I’d combine figs with brie. The taste and textures were perfect together.
Smaller is better – one big cheese ball is a bad finger food catering idea. People are uncomfortable with being the first to “disturb” the “artistic” cheese ball. Cheese is for eating, not looking! No one eats it, and all the time preparing and catering to eat will have gone to waste. Keep your cheese balls finger food friendly: not smaller than a grape but not so big that you can’t hold it on a toothpick.
Wine - a classic pairing and the best idea when making finger foods to share with close friends. Every caterer would agree that the perfect mix of wine, cheese and finger foods makes not only for great taste, but for great conversation.
National Cheese Ball Day is the perfect time to enjoy some catered finger foods. The variety of flavors and possibility are endless. If you’d like some help catering your Cheese Ball day, visit our catering directory to find a caterer near you. Enjoy your cheese on April 16 with some great finger foods and wine on the side: you and your guests will have an excellent time.
Tags: Brunch Catering, cheese, Finger Food, finger foods
