My First (and most Classic) "Cheesescape"

I love to "Cheesescape" (actually that is a huge understatement).  For those of you who have seen my Instagram posts, this probably isn't news to you, but for those of you who haven't had the opportunity to get to know me through my instagram or in person, yes, I am a "Cheesescape" fanatic.  

What is a "Cheesescape?"  I am sure this term probably has been in existence for a long time and I would never take credit for discovering the term, but it wasn't a term that I had researched or heard about.  It actually just came to my brain one day while preparing for a dinner party I was hosting that night.  I had just finished setting the table (aka Tablescaping) and was in the midst of assembling my first cheeseboard when the term happened to come to me.  "Cheesescape" is my word for decorating a cheeseboard.

This cheeseboard was a wonderful mix of flavors.  While their were certain pairings on this board that were exceptional together (like the pear crisps with the chili flake encrusted goat cheese drizzled with sourwood honey), the 3 cheese I selected for this board were fairly mild in flavor so  all of the different elements here were very "mix and match" friendly.  

Here is a breakdown of everything I used to "scape" this board:  

Cheeses:

Fruits:

  • Fresh Granny Smith Apple (sliced thinly with fresh squeezed lemon juice poured over the flesh to keep it from turning brown)
  • Red Apricot (they were in season at the time of this scape)
  • Dried Tart Cherries
  • Dried Fruit Medley

Crisps:

Fresh Herbs:

While this is sure to be only the first of many cheesescaping posts, I hope that it provides you with a little inspiration for the next time (or possibly first time) you "Cheesescape." 

Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Pretzel Sandwiches

Growing up, there was never a question that my favorite candy was the Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup.  I loved that combination of chocolate and peanut butter in any and all variations.  As terrible as this may sound, there was even a chocolate and peanut butter candy breakfast cereal that I can remember loving.  Not the healthiest, but OH WOW so delish!  

This love of the chocolate and peanut butter combination is still alive and well (although now I try to refrain from the cereal as an adult).  I recently came up with this new confection creation that incorporates my lifelong love of peanut butter and chocolate with my new love of pretzels.  This recipe is "no-bake" and requires only 3 ingredients.  Great to serve as a dessert at your next party or even to just enjoy when you are craving that something sweet!  They also taste great refrigerated.  

Ingredients

  • Peanut Butter
  • 100 Waffle Pretzels
  • 1 Bag Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips
  • 4 Pretzels Crushed 

Instructions:

  1. Lay out a large piece of parchment paper or aluminum foil on top of a large cutting board or cookie sheet (this will make clean-up a piece of cake)
  2. Apply a thin even layer of peanut butter to one side of roughly 50 pretzels
  3. Once the peanut butter has been applied to the base, add another pretzel to the top of each peanut butter covered pretzel to create a sandwich
  4. In a microwave safe bowl heat the chocolate chips for 30 seconds, remove the bowl, stir the chocolate chips, heat for another 30 seconds and repeat process until chocolate chips have been melted to a smooth and creamy consistency (Approximately 1-minute total)
  5. Dip each sandwich in the melted chocolate batter and then place on the sheet of parchment paper to dry.  **I like to wear disposable gloves for this part because chocolate dipping can get a little messy**
  6. Sprinkle the chocolate coated peanut butter pretzel sandwiches with the 4 leftover pretzels that have been crushed
  7. Allow almost 24 hours for these tasty confections to dry completely (but you can also dig in as soon as they are garnished)

Makes approx 50 sandwiches