Original Post: https://avitaltours.com/san-francisco/ultimate-guide-charcuterie-chalets/
You’re gathered about the dining room table, surrounded by family and friends. There’s music, lights, drinks, and laughter, all surrounding a little house made of meat and cheese. Ok, maybe it’s not the Hallmark Classic you remember, but in addition to being fun, quirky, and delicious, Charcuterie Chalets have an incredible way of bringing people together, especially around the holidays!
We’ve been designing award-winning culinary experiences for the last 11 years. And since March 2020, we’ve shipped over 50,000 experience kits, including our newest Charcuterie Chalet Kit. Our mission is to deepen human connection through interactive food + drink experiences. And we believe our charcuterie chalet kits do just that! Ready to bite into this world of edible architecture? In this guide we’ll cover:
- What is a Charcuterie Chalet?
- Why Build a Charcuterie Chalet?
- 12 Awesome Charcuterie Chalets to Inspire Your Build
- How to Build a Charcuterie Chalet
- Download Free Charcuterie Chalet Shopping List
WHAT IS A CHARCUTERIE CHALET?
Charcuterie chalets, also known as charcuterie houses or charcuterie gingerbread houses, are savory gingerbread houses made from ingredients typically found on a charcuterie and cheese board. The structure is made of crackers or flatbreads, held together with spreadable cheese. Then it’s decorated using finocchiona salami for scrumptious shingles, fresh rosemary as festive wreaths, and grated parmesan as savory snow.
The origin of the concept is unknown, but search traffic peaked in December 2020. Since then, the charcuterie chalet has remained a unique remix on the classic holiday gingerbread tradition.
WHY BUILD A CHARCUTERIE CHALET?
Nothing brings people together like food. Combine that with creative construction and you have the recipe for an incredible afternoon or evening of fun. Great for teams, families, couples, and friends, the Charcuterie Chalet Kit is the ultimate way to connect this holiday season and beyond.
Brings People Together: Collaborate (or compete) with friends, family, or colleagues as you build your creations together. Doing something new and different together will allow you to learn more about one another.
Delicious Lasting Memories: Enjoy the rich meats and cheeses, then cherish the memories forever. A more thoughtful and sustainable gift than cheap trinkets, scratchy socks, or boring gift baskets.
Unique Crowd Pleaser: Even for the tough "those who have everything" recipients on your list. Chalets can be made vegetarian to accommodate dietary restrictions too!
For Every Occasion:
- Unique Gift Idea
- Office Holiday Party
- Girls Night
- Date Night
- Holiday Activity for Kids
- Friendsgiving
- Team Building
12 AWESOME CHARCUTERIE CHALETS TO INSPIRE YOUR BUILD
1. Classic Chalet by Ain't to Proud Meg
This is one of the most popular charcuterie chalets online, and for good reason! With an adorable mini brie snowman, sage wreath, and bundle of pretzel sticks, we're hungry just looking at it!@ainttooproudtomeg What do you think of the#charcuteriechalet trend? #charcuterie #foodtok #cheesetok #learnfromme ♬ Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree - Brenda Lee
2. Smoking Chimney and All!
This charcuterie house by ConVino Board has it all, including a chimney with real smoke! She used one of Edible Architecture's kits which made it not only beautiful, but easy!@convinoboard charcuterie chalets are the new gingerbread house 🧀🤩🎄❄️ & yes that’s parmesan cheese snow #charcuterieboard #christmascountdown #christmas #foodlover #cheesetok ♬ Mariah Carey ITS TIIIIIME 1 November - Daydream Era
3. Meat Bricks for the Win
Kim from thankyoucheesenj created the cutest little charcuterie chalet using salami not only for the shingles, but also as bricks along the outer walls. Complete with some fresh green veggies.@thankyoucheesenj Welcome to #thankyoucheese I’m bringing you a lil holiday cheer with this charcuterie chalet #charcuterie #chalet #cheese #gingerbreadhouse ♬ It's Beginning to Look a Lot like Christmas - Michael Bublé
4. A Work of Edible Art
Amanda at sellingthesuburbs used her interior design skills to create a one-of-a-kind chalet. Using a store-bought gingerbread house kit made it structurally sound so she could focus on the festive decor.@sellingthesuburbs Charcuterie Chalet #charcuterie #charcuterieboardsoftiktok #aldi #home #chalet #christmas2022 #allthingschristmas #winter #winterhomedecor ♬ This Is a Work of Art (Sketchy) - Dubskie
5. A Simple Chalet for Date Night
This cute house was also made using Edible Architecture's charcuterie chalet kit which made it a breeze to put together. A fun date night idea, with guaranteed laughs and delicious snacks.@food_of_ct If you’ve been looking for a unique gift or a festive activity to do with the foodies in your life, I highly recommend ordering a charcuterie chalet kit from @EdibleArchitecture by @Avital Tours! Colten and I had so many laughs while building this, and even if it doesn’t look perfect, it’s certainly delicious 😋 To order a kit for yourself, visit the link in my bio and tap the Amazon Marketplace link. You’ll see a picture of my chalet pinned - tap on that, and you’ll be brought to the product page 💕 #foodofct #charcuterie #charcuterie #charcuterietiktok #charcuterieforkids #charcuteriechallenge #charcuteriechalet #charcuterielover #charcuterielovers #uniquegifts #giftidea #giftideas #christmasgift #christmasgiftideas #avitaltours #ediblearchitecture #connecticut #amazonproductsyouneedordont #amazonmusthaves ♬ One Two Three And - Shuko & F. Of Audiotreats
6. Inspired by Famous Architecture
This creator took it a step further to recreate Zaha Hadid's MAXXI museum in Rome, but completely out of meat, cheese, and snacks. Now that's a museum we'd like to go to!@ediblearchitecturekits Inspired by the incredible @zahahadidarchitects. What iconic building do you want to see next?? #ediblearchitecture #charcuteriechalet #fyp ♬ Aesthetic - Tollan Kim
7. A Fairy Tale Cheese Cottage
This gorgeous cheese and meat cottage looks like something out of a fairy tale. From the apricot stepping stones to the basil foliage and salami heart, we'd love to spend a night nibbling on this oasis.@thatcheeseplate Yes or no? All ingredients are on my IG! #charcuteriechalet ♬ original sound - Marissa Mullen
8. Nice to Meat You, Beauty
This charcuterie chalet does not skimp on meat and cheese! With a thick layer of salami shingles and luscious goat cheese snowman, we'd love to take a bit (or several) of this beautiful creation.@thecheesegallery It’s a charcuterie chalet kinda day #cheesetok #holiday #holidaycountdown #foodtok #cheese #food ♬ White Christmas - The Drifters
9. Strips and Stars
Modern Charcuterie shows us that charcuterie chalets don't always need to be holiday-esque. Her edible architecture is festive with white stars and a red door, making it perfect for 4th of July!@moderncharcuteriepgh Charcuterie Chalet #charcuterie #moderncharcuteriepgh #charcuterieboard #charcuteriechalet ♬ original sound - Modern Charcuterie
10. A Great Big Festive Cabin
This large cabin comes together with pepperoni shingles and four walls made of different ingredients, like pepper jack and marbled cheddar. There's even a lawn chair made of pretzel sticks!@soozieq007 #charcuterie #charcuterieboard #charcuteriechalet #charcuterieboardsoftiktok #cheeseboard #christmas #christmascountdown #gingerbreadhouse #meatandcheese ♬ White Christmas - The Drifters
11. Icicles Made from Cheese
The shredded cheese icicles take this beautiful savor gingerbread house over the top! There are so many details to take in, it's *almost* too pretty to eat!@belmakesmusica Yes those are shredded cheese icicles 😌 #fyp #charcuterie #gingerbreadhouse #sharcoochi #holidaytiktok ♬ original sound - Tik Toker
12. The Meatiest Mansion
We'd expect no less from the creators at Olympia Provisions. Using a non-edible base, they're able to pile on the high quality meats thick!
@olympiaprovisions It’s ✨charcuterie chalet✨ season #charcuteriechalet #meatmavericks #charcuterie #foodtok #fyp #ReadySetShop ♬ O, Christmas Tree - Christmas
HOW TO BUILD A CHARCUTERIE CHALET
The best part about building charcuterie chalets is that you can bring your own creativity to the table! It can also be customized to your liking. For example, if you don't eat meat, you can make a veggie villa or fromage cottage! You can also make it as simple or complex as you'd like.
Option 1: Buy a Charcuterie Chalet Kit If you want to build something beautiful and delicious, but also easy, get a charcuterie chalet kit. The kit includes everything you need to build your own savor gingerbread house, including a step-by-step building guide, all tools, and high-quality, delicious ingredients.
Option 2: Follow a Charcuterie Chalet Recipe If you're up for a challenge you can skip the kit and create your own design! It's great to take inspiration from other creators, but it's also fun to think outside the box and come up with new styles and decor ideas. Once you've decided on the direction you'd like to go, the basic steps are the same.
STEP 1. GATHER YOUR MATERIALS
Here's the items that you'll need in each category to make your Charcuterie Chalet:
STRUCTURAL SUPPORT & WALLS (Pick 2-3): Choose ingredients like crackers, pretzel rods, breadsticks, or flatbreads.
BINDING GLUE (Pick 1): Choose sticky, spreadable ingredients, like spreadable cheese, cream cheese, or even Cheez Whiz.
DECOR (Pick 3-5): Choose ingredients with a variety of flavors and textures, like different cheeses, deli meats, fresh herbs, fresh vegetables and fruits, pickled things, nuts, and other snacks.
TOOLS:
- Surface to Build Chalet: Baking Sheet, Plate, Cutting Board, etc
- Cutting Board
- Sharp Knife
- Butter Knife or Spoon
- Ziplock Bag + Scissors for Piping
STEP 2. MAKE STRUCTURE OF CHARCUTERIE CHALET
You can choose from a variety of different materials to build you structure with.
Breadsticks or Pretzel Rods: Create your chalet using a log cabin style build. Think Lincoln Logs!
Flatbreads: It is recommended to build the walls first and then bind them together with Binding Glue to make a cube-like structure. Of course, you can get creative here. You'll need structural supports to make your charcuterie chalet structurally sound and to hold the roof up. Ways to make it supported are to use breadsticks on joints where walls come together, use flatbreads overlapping seams perpendicularly to strengthen them, create internal support beams to rest the roof structure on, and/or build up posts in the middle of the structure.
STEP 3. DECORATE YOUR CHARCUTERIE CHALET
This is where your imagination can run wild. Use salami shingles, parmesan as snow, pickles for trees, and more!
FREE CHARCUTERIE CHALET SHOPPING LIST
Make prepping for your charcuterie chalet a breeze with a free shopping list download! Includes a list for every category, from structural support ingredients to tools and everything in between.
Get Free Shopping List Download
Whether you buy a kit or do it all yourself, charcuterie chalets are one of the best ways to connect with family and friends. Give as a gift, do it it together before a holiday meal, or compete with colleagues in a festive team building challenge. Flex your creative muscles this holiday season!
