Cranberry Seacuterie Board.
Oysters on the half shell with a cranberry mignonette, shrimp cocktail with a cranberry cocktail sauce, seared sea scallops with a cranberry chutney, olives, capers, a garlic and herb cheese spread and an assortment of crackers make up this beautiful seacuterie board. This seafood platter would be a stunning appetizer at any of your holiday gatherings this season.
Thanks to my friends at Cape Cod Select for sponsoring this post and thanks to you, my readers, for supporting brands that help keep My Cape Cod Kitchen running. As always, all opinions are my own.
What is a seacuterie board?
A seacuterie board is basically a charcuterie (cheese) board except instead of the cheese being the star of the show, a seacuterie board is all about celebrating the seafood. Canned, fresh, frozen, pouched, raw, cooked, seared, smoked, dried, etc. – any type of seafood can be used. The seacuterie board is like a seafood tower without the levels – and tends to have more variety to it than a tower does.
My seacuterie boards always include a few types of seafood – in this case – raw local oysters, seared local sea scallops and cooked shrimp with sauces, dips or dressings to pair the seafood with – on this board – a beautiful easy cranberry mignonette, a semi-homemade cranberry cocktail sauce and a cranberry chutney. Then, I add in more salty and briny items like olives and capers. And, lastly, I add some crackers or chips with one or more cheeses. Other optional add-ons include salted nuts, kimchi, seaweed salad – really, the options are endless.
We love a good seafood platter in any season because it’s celebratory, it’s intriguing, it’s delicious – and guess what? It can be packed with ingredients that are good-for-you – seafood and non-seafood alike.
Cranberries aren’t just for the holidays!
This seafood board also highlights cranberries – because after all, it’s cranberry season in New England. In addition to fresh cranberries that are being harvested right now, Cape Cod Select offers frozen cranberries (in grocers nationwide!) that you can purchase year-round. Those frozen cranberries are a staple in our freezer – no matter the season. Frozen cranberries are what you see on this board – whole, cut in half, in the mignonette, in the cocktail sauce and in the cranberry chutney. They are versatile, tart, slightly sweet and perfectly delicious!
This beauty of a board is perfect for sharing this holiday season, preferably by a roaring fire with a glass of something bubbly. Sounds good, doesn’t it?
So, what’s on this Cranberry Seacuterie Board?
- Cooked shrimp
- Cranberry cocktail sauce
- Raw oysters, shucked (If you need a tutorial on how to shuck oysters, check out this post)
- Cranberry mignonette
- Sea scallops
- Alouette spread
- Cape Cod Select Cranberry Chutney
- Castelvetrano olives
- Capers
- Rosemary décor
- Lime wedges
- Crackers (whichever you prefer!)
Here’s the cranberry cocktail sauce for serving with the shrimp – you can whip it up in minutes in a food processor.
And the cranberry mignonette for serving with the oysters – equally as simple and only requires a minute chopping the cranberries and shallot.
And here’s the Cranberry Chutney (so good!) served with scallops:
In addition to being beautiful, this seafood platter is good-for-you. How?
- Cranberries are rich in health-promoting proanthocyanidins (these “PACs” help prevent bad bacteria from sticking in the urinary and digestive tract), rich in immune-system supporting Vitamin C, rich in digestive health supporting and hunger satisfying fiber — and research suggests that the use of cranberries as part of a healthy diet can help maintain a beneficial population of gut microbiota.
- Oysters are rich in protein, important for muscle health, Vitamin D, important for bone and tooth health as well as immune health, and rich in Vitamin B12, iron, zinc, copper, and selenium. They also contain some omega-3 fatty acids. NOTE: Children and those who are pregnant, breastfeeding or those with weakened immune systems should not eat raw oysters, but can safely eat cooked oysters.
- Scallops are rich in protein, important for muscle health, Vitamin B12, important for brain function and red blood cell synthesis, selenium, important for immune system health, phosphorous, important for bone and tooth strength and more.
- Shrimp is rich in protein, essential for muscle health, rich in selenium, important for heart, immune system and thyroid health and provides a good or excellent source of: Vitamin B12, phosphorus, choline, copper, iron and iodine.
NOTE: To make sure you’re buying sustainably grown and harvested shrimp, check out seafoodwatch.org. You can also look for the MSC, ASC and BAP certifications.
Here’s how to make this seacuterie board:
Cranberry Seacuterie Board
Ingredients
For the Cranberry Mignonette
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Champagne, Prosecco or Cava dry sparkling wine
- 1 tablespoon minced shallot about 1/2 a shallot
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped Cape Cod Select cranberries
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the Cranberry Cocktail Sauce
- 1/2 cup cocktail sauce (we used Primal Kitchen)
- 1/4 cup Cape Cod Select frozen cranberries
- 1/2 lime, juice of
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the Seared Scallops
- 1/2 pound sea scallops (or use fresh bay scallops if you can find them), patted dry, tough side muscle removed
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon butter
- 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
Assembly
- 1/2 pound cooked shrimp chilled
- 6-8 raw oysters shucked, kept very cold on ice
- 1/2 cup Cape Cod Select Cranberry Chutney
- 1/2 cup Alouette cheese spread
- 1/4 cup olives we like Castelvetrano olives
- 2 tablespoons capers
- Lime wedges
- Crackers
- Rosemary sprigs for decor
Instructions
For the Cranberry Mignonette:
- Whisk together the white wine vinegar, sparkling wine, shallot, cranberries, sugar and black pepper. Pour into a small serving bowl.
For the Cranberry Cocktail Sauce:
- Add cocktail sauce, cranberries, lime juice, salt and black pepper to a food processor. Pulse a few times until combined but still a bit chunky. Pour into a small serving bowl.
For the Seared Scallops:
- Make sure scallops are patted dry. Season them with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat a non-stick pan over medium high heat. Add the olive oil and butter. Once hot, add the scallops. Sear for 1-2 minutes on each side until desired doneness.
Assembly:
- Place Himalayan salt (or crushed ice) on a large serving platter. Add the seared scallops, oysters and shrimp onto the platter in 3 separate sections.
- Place the cranberry chutney in a small serving bowl and nestle next to the scallops. Place the mignonette next to the oysters and nestle the cranberry cocktail sauce next to the shrimp. Place the olives and capers into small bowls and nestle onto the platter in an open spot. Place the cheese spread into a small bowl and nestle in any free space. Add crackers where room allows. Add lime wedges around the platter. Fill any openings with rosemary sprigs. Add small spoons and knives as needed for serving.
- Serve platter with glasses of dry sparkling wine or rose.
Nutrition
Learn a bit more about Cape Cod Select :
- The Rhodes Family has been harvesting cranberries in Southeastern Massachusetts, the heart of “Cranberry Country” for over 70 years. They select only the ripest, freshest fruit to package for a truly premium quality product.
- From cranberry flower to package, they strive to integrate all the latest sustainable technologies and pledge to do their part in protecting the environment.
- They provide “Cranberries for All Seasons” by putting the whole fresh-frozen berries into retail packages for year-round use. Cranberries are no longer limited to the holiday season. Cranberries should be a staple in your freezer year-round! They are in ours!
- They make THE BEST quality cranberries on the market by using a premium cranberry then cleaning, sorting, and packing the product in their on-site purpose-built cleaning facility.
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