this post is sponsored by Cabot Creamery. thank you for supporting the partnerships that allow brewing happiness to grow and exist. xoxo

Here we are in one of our strangest holiday seasons yet, but we’re incredibly grateful that there’s always good moments to share and good food to be eaten. Especially great for sharing among your household this time of year is this Holiday Dinner Board with Aged Cheddar-Cranberry Bites, made with some gorgeous cheddar by Cabot Creamery. We’ve paired these Cheddar Cranberry Bites with a list of ingredients you can DIY to make your own Holiday Dinner Board, so feel free to follow our guide in the ingredients list and improvise with a few of your favorite things too!

These tart and creamy Aged Cheddar-Cranberry Bites are made with Cabot Creamery’s 3 Year Aged Cheddar Cheese and man oh man, let us tell you why we love it. First of all, it’s delicious, duh. And while we chose the 3 Year Aged Cheddar for these Cheddar Cranberry Bites, Cabot Creamery also makes 1, 2, and 5 year aged cheddar cheeses (all you cheddar enthusiasts out there can take your pick). Besides the fact that cheddar cheese pairs perfectly with cranberry and sits beautifully with the puff pastry, all of Cabot Creamery’s cheddars are 100% naturally lactose-free. Yeah, you heard that right—and you know we love to respect a dietary restriction during the holidays. Not to mention (but we will), all Cabot Cheddars pass the test for both Halal and Kosher standards and are naturally gluten-free.

Beyond the cheese itself, it’s great to know that Cabot Creamery is a co-op owned by families that farm throughout New England and New York. That means 100% of their profits go back to the farmers, and we love to support that type of ethical business. All that to say, their 3 Year Aged Cheddar makes our Holiday Dinner Board with Aged Cheddar-Cranberry Bites the absolute best it can be.

What’s the cheddar on top, you ask? Our Cheddar Cranberry Bites are wildly easy to make (shout out to store-bought puff pastry). So let’s get ‘em going.

Holiday Dinner Board Ingredients

Aged Cheddar-Cranberry Bites
Cabot Creamery 3 Year Aged Cheddar, sliced
Crackers (go wild!)
Baked Ham (Just buy it or use this recipe from my friend Meggan!)
Roasted Carrots
Blanched Green Beans
Deviled Eggs (try this recipe!)
Cranberry Sauce (this recipe is pretty close to how I make it.)
Pomegranate Seeds
Pecans
Rosemary (mostly for garnish, but it’s also good to put some chopped on top of your cheese bites!)

Aged Chedddar-Cranberry Bite Ingredients

Cabot Creamery 3 Year Aged Cheddar: we found the 3 year aged cheddar cheese struck the perfect balance between mild and sharp for these bites.
Puff Pastry Sheet: store-bought, baby. Saving you some extra time and energy because we’re sure you have a LOT to cook up.
Cranberry sauce: take your pick from the grocery store or whip up your favorite family recipe. (This recipe is pretty close to how I make it.)

Equipment

The Process

STEP ONE

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and let’s get rollin’ on rollin’ out your puff pastry.

Lightly flour your work space and place 1 sheet of Puff Pastry on it, then lightly flour the sheet itself as well. Roll it out until it’s VERY thin. You want to get it to about 15 inches by 10 inches.

When you’ve reached your goal, poke the entire sheet with a fork. Next, cut it into 24 circles (a 2.5” cookie cutter is perfect for this).

STEP TWO

Gently form your little pastry puff circles into a mini muffin tray and cut either parchment paper or foil into 24 three-inch squares. You’ll use these squares now to line each puff pastry in the muffin tray. Once lined, fill each parchment paper cup with pie weights. If you don’t have either of those, dried beans or even granulated sugar will work just fine! You just want something heavy and oven-safe to help your puffs keep their shape.

Once everyone’s filled up, bake them at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

STEP THREE

While they’re baking, grab your Cabot Creamery 3 Year Aged Cheddar and try to resist putting it straight into your mouth—we’re using the whole package here. Cut 1 package Cabot Creamery 3 Year Aged Cheddar into 24 even cubes and you’re ready to go.

STEP FOUR

Once you’ve pulled your mini muffin tray out of the oven, go ahead and remove all your bake weights and parchment paper or foil. Fill each pastry cup with a delightful cheese cube and pop it back in that 350 degree oven for another 7-8 minutes. You’ll know they’re done when the cheese is fully melted and the pastry edges are golden brown.

STEP FIVE

Last things last, top each bite with a touch of cranberry sauce and your Aged Cheddar Cranberry Bites are good as gold. Assemble them with the rest of your ingredients on your Holiday Dinner Board and you’re ready to enjoy.

Be sure to check out all of Cabot Creamery’s offerings for lactose-free aged cheddar cheeses! Need another dish to fill your holiday table? Whip up our Pumpkin Apple Turkey Meatloaf next. Want

While our Aged Cheddar-Cranberry bites are an absolute must for your Holiday Dinner Board, the rest is up to you! Check out our recommendations in the ingredients list, find yourself a beautiful something-to-serve-on, and assemble away.

Want some more veggies on the board? Try this Toasted Sesame and Pumpkin Dip with a Crudites Platter. Or if you’re feelin’ extra cheesy, you could add this Savory Herbed Holiday Baked Brie to the board.

Aged Cheddar-Cranberry Bites

These Aged Cheddar-Cranberry Bites made with Cabot 3 Year Aged Cheddar are a delicious and easy holiday treat! Mini puff pastry pockets are filled with aged cheddar cheese, baked until melted and gooey, and topped with a dollop of cranberry sauce! Use them as an appetizer, or make a whole holiday dinner board.

Servings 24 bites

Ingredients

1 Cabot Creamery 3 Year Aged Cheddar
1 Puff Pastry Sheet
1 c Cranberry Sauce

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350℉.
Lightly flour a work surface and roll out the puff pastry sheet as thin as possible, its should be roughly 15” x 10”. Use a fork to poke holes all over the dough.
Using a 2.5” round cookie cutter cut 24 circles. Lightly form into a mini muffin tray.
Cut 24 3 inch squares from parchment paper or foil and line each pastry lined cup, fill with bake weights (dry beans may be used if you don’t have bake weights).
Bake for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile cut the Cabot Creamery 3 Year Aged Cheddar block into 24 pieces.
Remove the pastry cups from the oven then carefully remove the bake weights and paper.
Fill each cup with a cube of cheese and return to the oven for another 5-7 minutes, until the cheese has just melted.
Remove them from the oven and top each with roughly a teaspoon of cranberry sauce.
Serve as an appetizer or on a holiday dinner board!