Christmas Dessert Board (with Buttercream Icing)
Servings 12 servings
Ingredients
- For the Buttercream Frosting:
- 3 cups powdered sugar sifted
- 1 cup salted butter softened
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp pure almond extract
- green gel food coloring
- 1 5 oz package gummy berries (or red hots or red gum drops to decorate the wreath and add color to the board)
- 1 10 oz package candy kisses, jelly beans or any of your favorite Christmas candy
- candy canes either hard candy or gummy candy canes
- Candies, Cookies & Other Treats:
- 10-20 mini brownie bites
- 10-20 chocolate covered pretzel rods or chocolate dipped Oreos
- 10-15 chocolate dipped cookies or ginger cookies
- 5-10 mini donuts
- 5-10 mini cinnamon buns or pecan rolls
- 5-10 shortbread cookies
- You could also add fresh fruits for dipping like strawberries and cubed pound cake
Instructions
- To Make the Buttercream Frosting: In a medium bowl using an electric mixer beat butter with vanilla and almond extracts for 2 minutes or just until light yellow and fluffy. Lower the speed of the mixer and gradually add the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time. Once all is added, beat on high until light and fluffy. (about 5 minutes). Scrap the bowl, then use a toothpick to swirl green gel into the buttercream. Beat with the mixer, repeating until the desired depth of color is reached.
- Prepare a piping bag with a Wilton 1M piping tip (or similar large open star tip) and fill the piping bag with green buttercream frosting.
- To Assemble the Christmas Dessert Board: In the middle of a large 15-18" charcuterie board (pictured here is a 15” round board), make a circle of green swirl “roses”. Place red berry candies around the frosting wreath.
- Place several small bowls around the board, fill with seasonal gummies, candy kisses and Christmas candy.
- Fill the rest of the board in with the cookies, mini brownies, pretzel rods, mini doughnuts, cinnamon buns, shortbread cookies, fruit and pound cake or your favorite sweets to dip into the buttercream.
- Please Note: The buttercream can stay out at room temperature safely while serving for several hours. To store, it should be wrapped well in food-safe plastic wrap or an airtight container and popped into the refrigerator.
- Storage: The best way to store these leftovers is to scoop the buttercream into a food-safe container. Then keep the candies and other sweets stored separately in food-safe containers at room temperature.
Notes
-
- Be Creative: There's no wrong amount or types of sweets and goodies you use to create a holiday charcuterie board. Have fun and be creative!
- Gel Coloring: For this green color, I used the brand Chefmaster Liqua-gel in the color Leaf Green. Gel coloring works best as it doesn't add any additional liquid to the buttercream frosting. You can use any brand of gel coloring found at your local craft store, big box store such as Target or Walmart or baking supply store.
- What Cookies, Cake and Sweets Work Best for Dipping into the Buttercream? First of all, it's fine to use store-bought treats. The best cookies and sweets for dipping into the buttercream are ones that are firm enough to not fall apart in the dip. Any sorts of cookies or brownies would work.
- Best Cake: For cake pieces, a simple cake mix cake probably isn’t firm enough (it would crumble on the board) but something firmer like my Million Dollar Pound Cake cut into small cubes would work well. Choose items that won’t dry out quickly once they are cut up and placed on the board. Marshmallows would be a great addition!
- Add Salty to Balance the Sweet: You can add chocolate-covered pretzels, pretzel crisps and plain potato chips for a savory option.
- Cookies: Use sugar cookies or any homemade or store-bought cookies that you like.
- Fruit: You could add cherries, pear slices, grapes, raspberries and sugared cranberries for a festive pop of color for a festive holiday dessert board.
- Nuts: Add pecans, almonds, cashews or peanuts for crunch.
- Sprinkles: I used candy to decorate the buttercream to look like a wreath. You could use holiday sprinkles, instead.