This Sweet and Salty Christmas Snack Board is the ultimate way to entertain during the holidays! These sweet and salty snacks require absolutely zero cooking and are devoured by both kids and adults alike. We’ve included tons of snack ideas, as well as easy tips to make your board beautiful and festive for any holiday gathering.
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If you're like me, the holiday season means *lots* of opportunities to see people, meet up with old friends, have game nights, and gather with family. I absolutely love that part of this season!
But... (dare I say it?) sometimes all the get-togethers are overwhelming, especially since I am expected to contribute food to most of them. And I don't magically have a budget or clear schedule to cater 8 parties in the space of a month. 😬😂
Enter this Sweet and Salty Christmas Snack Board! This snack board is the BEST way to entertain at holiday events!
🥇 Why it's great
- It appeals to kids and adults: The beauty of a snack board is that you can get a variety of snacks that appeal to everyone in the crowd. You know who you are serving best, so choose snack ideas that will give everyone something to enjoy.
- No cooking required, yet it feels special: Even though not a single thing on the board is homemade, everyone always gets so excited when we serve this. 😍That's what I call a win-win! Add a few Christmas snacks that are just in stores during the holidays and you'll have an extra special board that people look forward to every year.
- Use the same snacks for multiple boards: If you have multiple events within a few weeks, you can use the same snacks to make multiple boards. Nooooo extra work required.
- Anyone can make it look beautiful: Even if you've never made one before, it's really easy to learn how to make a snack board. We have all our tips below!
🍪 Snack board ideas
You can really use any snack board ideas you want to make this platter. This list is just a starting point, so get as creative as you want. If there is a Christmas snack you especially love, let us know in the comments below!
As a heads up, I included links to a lot of our favorite snacks so that you can see them. Not every store has their items online to link, so I used Amazon links instead. But most of the items can be purchased from the actual store for much cheaper. No need to use Amazon unless that's best for you.
Crackers
Start with basic crackers, like Ritz, Wheat Thins, Triscuits, or multigrain. Then pick a few special varieties. My absolute favorite crackers are these Sweet Potato Crackers from Trader Joe's (Costco also sells a similar cracker that is great!). I also love fruit and nut crackers, like these Crispy and Savory Pistachio Pomegranate Crisps (also from Trader Joe's), or cheesy crackers, like Goldfish or Cheez-Its.
Popcorn
Popcorn options can be sweet or savory! My go-to popcorn is this Black and White Drizzle Popcorn from Sam's. We also love Boom Chicka Pop Sweet and Salty Kettle Corn, any tasty caramel corn, and occasionally a cheddar popcorn. IF you want to do a little cooking, this White Chocolate Churro Popcorn is also a good option.
Cookies
This is a great place to make it a Christmas snack board with themed items, like these Dark Chocolate Mint Stars. My top cookie choice is Trader Joe's Oatmeal Cranberry Dunkers, but I also love classic Oreos or Girl Scout cookies (I get the generic version at Walmart). IF you want to do a little cooking, you can always have these Chocolate Mint Cookies in the freezer ready to bake.
Dried or fresh fruit
Think about your audience when picking fruit. For dried fruit, dried cranberries, apricots, raisins, and golden raisins usually go over well. For fresh fruit, berries, tangerine slices, and grapes work great. I would avoid any fruit that will brown after slicing.
Nuts
So many options here! You can use raw nuts, including almonds, walnuts, cashews, or pecans. OR you can use flavored and candied nuts. I'm a huge fan of honey roasted peanuts, candied pecans (you can make or buy these), or any spicy flavored nuts. Another great option is chocolate covered nuts, like these Dark Chocolate Covered Almonds.
Meat
Sliced, cured meats or deli style meat works best as snacky foods. We typically use charcuterie-style salami, pepperoni, or prosciutto. We've also used sliced ham or turkey.
Cheese
I recommend choosing 2-3 cheeses: one standard, one spicy, and one specialty. For standard, slices of sharp or mild cheddar, provolone, or Colby Jack are good. Our favorite spicy cheese is Flamin' Jack Cheese sold at Sam's, but any other brand would do just fine. For specialty cheeses, we like mozzarella pearls, Trader Joe's Creamy Toscano Cinnamon Cheese (they don't have a link, but just Google it or look in stores), or any smoked cheese.
Jams or spreads
All of the cracker options usually go well with 1-2 jams or spreads. We like to buy or make a simple cheese ball, as well as serve something spicy, like this Hot and Sweet Pepper Jelly. You could also serve hummus and sliced pita bread.
Other snacks
Some other popular snack ideas I've used are olives (green or black), pickles (dill or sweet), and pretzels (regular, peanut butter-filled, chocolate-coated, etc). You can also buy individual-sized candies, M&M's, or licorice. Plus, of course, any other Christmas snacks would be perfect.
Again, this snack board is completely flexible. Use any snack ideas you would like!
🔪 How to make a sweet and salty snack board
- Select a board: Start by choosing a large cutting board, platter, or cookie sheet to assemble on.
- Choose bowls: Next, choose 3-5 small bowls of varying sizes.
- Place the bowls first: To assemble, start by placing 3 bowls on your surface. You can either group 3 bowls together like in the photos, or you can space them in a rough zigzag pattern.
- Arrange items in clusters: Start filling in the space around the bowls with little clusters of items (i.e. a pile of grapes, a pile of meat, etc). This is a fluid process - be flexible and feel free to move things around as you go until it looks good.
- Balance colors: As you fill the board, try to situate similar colored items across from each other to visually balance the platter. For example, we have white chocolate pretzels across from the white mozzarella. We have dried cranberries across from the red strawberries.
- Fan items: Be sure to use a fan pattern for some items to take up space. The best items to fan are slices of cheese, crackers, and meat.
- Pause and look: As the board begins to fill, step back and look. If anything is looking funky, just take it off and place it somewhere new. With a bit of practice, you'll develop an eye for what looks good.
- Go back for final touches: Last, once the board is mostly full, go back and add a few of the same items across from each other. For example, in our board we sprinkled chocolate mint star cookies in two places, and we added strawberries in two places. This helps pull the whole board together.
🙋 Questions and Answers
Snack boards can also be called snack platters, snack trays, grazing boards, or sometimes a charcuterie board.
This Sweet and Salty Christmas Snack Board should be made with a variety of... well, sweet and salty snacks. I've included a whole list of ideas above.
👨🏼🍳 Tips & Tricks
- Choose general and Christmas snacks that appeal to kids and adults so that everyone is happy!
- Include a mix of sweet and salty items, not just one or the other. That's what makes this board so delicious!
- Arrange the board about 20-30 minutes before serving. This will ensure the cold items stay cold or room temperature for longer.
📖 Other holiday recipes
- Churro Popcorn Recipe - This is such a fun movie night treat! Just 4 ingredients for a sweet, chewy popcorn coated in white chocolate and cinnamon.
- Chocolate Mint Cookies Recipe - Soft, chewy chocolate cookies topped with a melted Andes mint.... can it get any better?
- Classic Cheese Ball Recipe - Just 3 ingredients for a classic Thanksgiving, Christmas, and holiday appetizer. Plus it's perfect for making ahead!
👋 Connect with us!
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📋 Recipe
Sweet and Salty Christmas Snack Board
Ingredients
- Crackers: Ritz, Wheat Thins, Tricuits, multigrain, sweet potato crackers, nut and fruit crisps, Cheez-Its, Goldfish, etc.
- Popcorn: Black and White Popcorn, kettle corn, caramel corn, cheddar popcorn, salted popcorn, etc.
- Cookies: Oreos, white chocolate cranberry dunkers, chocolate mint cookies, generic Girl Scout cookies, etc.
- Dried fruit: Dried cranberries, raisins, golden raisins, dried apricots, etc.
- Fresh fruit: Strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, grapes, tangerines slices. (Avoid fruit that browns when sliced).
- Nuts: raw almonds, pecans, walnuts, cashews, candied nuts, honey roasted peanuts, flavored nuts, chocolate covered nuts, etc.
- Meat: Sliced cured meats including salami, pepperoni, prosciutto; or sliced deli meat including ham or turkey.
- Cheese: Sharp cheddar, provolone, Colby Jack, spicy cheese, mozzarella pearls, cinnamon toscano cheese, smoked cheese, etc.
- Jams or Spreads: Cheese ball, pepper jelly, hummus, etc.
- Pretzels: Regular, chocolate covered, peanut butter filled, soft, etc.
- Candy: M&M's, licorice, fun size candy bars, etc.
- Other snacks: Dill or sweet pickles, green or black olives, etc.
Instructions
- Select a board: Start by choosing a large cutting board, platter, or cookie sheet to assemble on.
- Choose bowls: Next, choose 3-5 small bowls of varying sizes.
- Place the bowls first: To assemble, start by placing 3 bowls on your surface. You can either group 3 bowls together like in the photos, or you can space them in a rough zigzag pattern.
- Arrange items in clusters: Start filling in the space around the bowls with little clusters of items (i.e. a pile of grapes, a pile of meat, etc). This is a fluid process - be flexible and feel free to move things around as you go until it looks good.
- Balance colors: As you fill the board, try to situate similar colored items across from each other to visually balance the platter. For example, we have white chocolate pretzels across from the white mozzarella. We have dried cranberries across from the red strawberries.
- Fan items: Be sure to use a fan pattern for some items to take up space. The best items to fan are slices of cheese, crackers, and meat.
- Pause and look: As the board begins to fill, step back and look. If anything is looking funky, just take it off and place it somewhere new. With a bit of practice, you'll develop an eye for what looks good.
- Go back for final touches: Last, once the board is mostly full, go back and add a few of the same items across from each other. For example, in our board we sprinkled chocolate mint star cookies in two places, and we added strawberries in two places. This helps pull the whole board together.
Notes
- Choose items that appeal to kids and adults so that everyone is happy!
- Include a mix of sweet and salty items, not just one or the other. That's what makes this board so delicious!
- Arrange the board about 20-30 minutes before serving. This will ensure the cold items stay cold or room temperature for longer.
Nutrition
All nutrition information is provided by a third party and is an estimate only. Use your own nutritional calculator for more specific measurements.
Pam says
This is such a fun idea for Christmas! I love the idea of not needing to cook but still serving something fun for the family.
Misty says
Yes, so fun and festive! Hope you try it out!