It is January, and we have all professed to engage in a new and healthier lifestyle. Cheese, crackers, meats, and dips have been purged from our kitchens as we search for entertaining options. Well, I have a solution for you. The Seacuterie Board!

What is a seacuterie board?

A seacuterie board is a charcuterie board using seafood. Seacuterie boards are great for people that don’t eat meat or are looking for a unique alternative to happy hour snacking.

What is on a seacuterie board?

Since my husband Chip passed away, I have been remiss with my recipes and cooking. Ok, remiss is a stretch; absent is a better word. I found myself alone on New Year’s Eve and wanted to make a good 2022 send-off snack. A charcuterie board was something that Chip I loved to make, and like so many things, I could not do it without him. So, I thought about it for a while, and the idea came to me that we used to prepare fish on New Year’s Eve; why not make a charcuterie board of fish or a seacuterie board?

I started to gather some items:

• Lobster meat
• Scallops
• Shrimp
• Calamari Salad and Farro Salad (Hooked Seafood)
• Baked Clams
• Smoked salmon
• Apples- Granny Smith is perfect.
• Nuts- Rosemary Marcona Almonds (Wegmans)
• Olives- any olives will do the trick
• (must have) cheese and crackers and a little prosciutto
• Chocolate, white or bittersweet

If Chip were here, he would have shucked some impeccably briny PEI oysters with a cool Sancerre and some white anchovies with toast too.  It is all a matter of taste, and there is no right or wrong way to create it.

I included some Dilly Bean spread from the store on Jay Street in Schenectady, NY (Well worth the trip) and some water crackers. Boursin works well too.

The seafood can be a combination of hot and cold seafood.  I made a small gratin dish of lobster, shrimp, and scallops with a bit of butter and shredded garlic. The stuffed clam was also warm.

The add-ons are endless:

• Sushi-grade tuna pieces in soy and wasabi powder marinade.
• Smelts
• Crab legs
• Mini crab cakes with Remoulade
• Another excellent idea is to serve escargots with some crusty bread. Again, not seafood, but there are no rules here!

Still cooking, or better yet, started cooking?

Perhaps I am. I do not cook anymore. I lost my sous chef and master pizza maker. However,  this endeavor presented as something other than cooking. It was more like writing. I was writing a story about all these unique and different tastes.  The creation kept my mind busy and my hands working as if my body knew Chip was beside me, chopping and laughing.  I would give one thousand New Year’s Eves for just one more with Chip, The Rippingtons, and a glass of wine. Dancing and cooking in the kitchen gave me (us) such joy; honestly, it did. It is both comforting and painful just thinking of it.

I did not want to give you a picture of my completed board. I wanted the design to come from each of you. I hope this seacuterie idea brings you together with your loved one, cooking and creating. There is nothing better than that. Cheese Heals and so does cooking when you do it with someone you love.

Can I ask a favor? Can you comment on this post with pictures of your seacuterie boards if you make them?  I would love that!

Karen