Candied Pecans

1. First, preheat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread pecans evenly over surface.
3. Drizzle honey over nuts and sprinkle sea salt.
4. Bake the pecans for 10-15 mins or until honey starts to caramelize and nuts are slightly darker in color. Cool and store in airtight container.

Sugared Cranberries

1. Preheat the oven to 200 Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Rinse and strain cranberries, then put in a bowl.
3. Whisk egg white with water in a separate, wide bowl.
4. Sift confectioner’s sugar onto a plate.
5. A handful at a time, toss the cranberries into the egg mixture, then roll cranberries in the sugar, coating well. Place sugar-coated cranberries onto the baking sheet and repeat until all cranberries have been coated.
6. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until a few cranberries have burst and their juice is oozing.
7. Let cool completely before handling. Stores best uncovered and in a single layer.

Board Building

1. Slice citrus and pears, and break the pomegranate into chunks.
2. Peel carrots and cut into matchsticks. Slice peppers in half or leave whole.
3. Next, assemble all of your ingredients in front of you on the counter, ready to go. This makes board building much easier since you can use your artistic sense to add a little bit of this here and a little bit of that there, filling in gaps and balancing ingredients and colors.
4. While there is no specific way to organize a board, it may be helpful to start with your biggest items. Arrange cheeses, jarred items and any pretty glass or ceramic containers filled with homemade candied pecans and sugared cranberries on your board.
5. Next, I recommend adding piles of carrots to several parts of the board, as well as pomegranate chunks, piles of pear, grapefruit and blood orange slices, and piles of crackers wherever you like best. These can be placed all over in random places or in very tidy rows and shapes. The creativity is up to you! Continue adding until your board is bursting with ingredients, variety and colors.
6. Some tricks: Scatter whole nuts and peppers into gaps and corners of your board that are open. Place sugared cranberries and loose pomegranate earls by and on cheeses to add a pop of color. Add salami last and tuck into any crevices.
7. Replenish board items throughout the night with leftovers as needed. Enjoy!