Cobblestone Courtyard Appetizer (Printable Version)

Round crackers and olives arranged to resemble cobblestones, accented with herbs and cheese.

# Needed Ingredients:

→ Crackers

01 - 36–40 round crackers (water crackers, multigrain, or rice crackers)

→ Olives

02 - 1 cup assorted pitted olives (Castelvetrano, Kalamata, black)

→ Garnishes (optional)

03 - 2 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs (parsley, thyme, or rosemary)
04 - 1/4 cup crumbled feta or goat cheese
05 - 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

# Preparation Steps:

01 - Select a large serving platter or charcuterie board to serve as the courtyard.
02 - Place round crackers closely together in a random, overlapping pattern to resemble cobblestones.
03 - Nestle assorted pitted olives into the spaces between crackers to create a mortar effect.
04 - Optionally, sprinkle chopped fresh herbs and crumbled cheese over the arrangement.
05 - Lightly drizzle extra virgin olive oil across the platter for flavor and sheen.
06 - Present immediately as an interactive and visually appealing appetizer centerpiece.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It's pure theater—your guests will actually gasp when they see it arranged on the board.
  • Zero cooking required, which means you can spend less time stressed and more time enjoying people.
  • It doubles as both appetizer and table decoration, solving two problems at once.
02 -
  • Pit your olives beforehand—no one wants to discover a pit mid-bite, and it's honestly rude to your guests.
  • Varying your cracker sizes dramatically improves the cobblestone illusion; use the exact same size crackers and it starts to look like a grid instead of a street.
03 -
  • Assemble this no more than 30 minutes before serving so crackers stay crisp and olives remain cool.
  • If you're nervous about the arrangement, sketch a quick light pattern in your mind first—trust that randomness is actually your secret weapon here.
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