Return of the Candy + Cheese Pairings

halloween party prep + my new kitchen!

Oct 18, 2024

Welcome back to Farmhouse Friday! The kitchen is finally done, and I couldn’t be more excited. I’ve never had a big kitchen with natural light before, and it’s such a game changer for cooking and making videos. It feels so good not to hunch over my low white Target table anymore after eight years of using it as the backdrop for every recipe. Now, I have a tall island, and so much more counter space!

Another thing I’m loving are these gorgeous stools and bench from Häti Home. I really wanted sturdy furniture that would last with the new house. Safe to say I’ve graduated from Ikea? When I found Häti Home on Instagram, I fell in love with their wooden pieces. The stools, bench, and table are all pictured below, and they’ve really made the space feel complete.

More links:

Kitchen Island

Long Pillow

That Party Planning Guide

If you’re wondering what to do for Halloween, look no further. I challenge you to host your own Halloween Candy + Cheese Party! This was a huge hit last year, so I decided to bring it back with some additional Halloween party decoration ideas, music playlist and more.

The Pairings

For this party, gather your friends and family to rank and review from the nine different cheese pairing combinations below - 1 being your favorite, 5 being your least favorite. You can start with 2-3 pairings, or try them all! The pairings are as follows:

Triple Creme Brie + Kit-Kats: The sweetness of the chocolate cuts through the salty and buttery interior of the triple creme Brie while the wafer adds a nice crunch to round out the bite
Pair with: Sparkling Wine or Champagne - The bubbles in the wine balance out the creaminess of the buttery triple creme and chocolate.
Aged Gouda + Caramel Popcorn: Both have flavor notes of butterscotch, caramel and salt. The popcorn has a stronger sweet aroma, cutting through the sharpness of the gouda
Pair with: Dry Apple Cider - Apples are a great pairing for both gouda and caramel popcorn, so a cider works wonderfully here.
Manchego + Reese's Peanut Butter Cups: Have you ever tried peanut butter cheesecake? That’s essentially what happens when you add Reese's in the mix. The result is sweet, nutty, and creamy
Pair with: Pinot Noir - I love red wine with Manchego, and a fruity pinot noir will add a nice complement to the peanut butter notes.
Brie + Candy Corn: Cow’s milk Brie is mild, buttery, and earthy. These blend together to make a creamy marshmallow flavor experience
Pair with: Sauvignon Blanc - A crisp white wine is a great pairing for a creamy brie.
Blue Cheese + Twix: Twix was the perfect solution to balance the blue, providing caramel to bring out the sweet notes, and chocolate to contrast the spice and kick
Pair with: Merlot - Blue cheese can stand up to darker, more full-bodied reds like merlot.
Camembert and Crunch Bars: The buttery and salty camembert is contrasted by the sweet milk chocolate, while the crispies add a nice texture element
Pair with: Champagne, The bubbles in the champagne are the perfect contrast to the buttery cheese, and I love a chocolate and champagne moment.
Sharp Cheddar + Butterfingers: Sharp cheddar has a slightly sweet and tangy flavor, a great complement to the peanut and toffee notes in a butterfinger. The sweetness of the candy can contrast the sharp notes of the cheese.
Pair with: Cabernet Sauvignon: This complements cheddar cheese well, offering a suitable level of acidity to offset the cheese's creaminess. Its fruity notes offer a nice contrast to the nutty flavor of the Butterfinger.
Gruyère + Snickers: Gruyère is known for its rich, salty, and nutty flavor. Aged gruyère especially has earthy notes that can stand up to the sweetness of the chocolate and caramel in a Snickers. The nuttiness of the candy also complements the subtle nutty notes in the cheese.
Pair with: Grüner Veltliner: A crisp white wine like a Grüner Veltliner would be a great pairing with gruyere, bringing out the fruity notes of the cheese. I also love to pair a Swiss cheese with a Swiss wine!
Fresh Chèvre + Twizzlers: Had to add this for the fruity candy fans. The goat cheese acts as a neutral, lemony base for the cherry notes of the Twizzlers to shine
Pair with: Riesling: Riesling is full of aromas like peach, pear, grapefruit, and apricot, tying into the fruity candy. I’d prefer a dryer Riesling with this pairing so the sweetness isn’t too overwhelming on the palette.

I recommend around 1 oz of each cheese and one piece of candy per person (feel free to use more than that if you want!) Lay the cheese and candy pairings on a board and go through tasting each one by one. Note: Eat the cheese and candy together, not separately, followed by a sip of the drink. Now for the party ambiance…

The Vibe

When throwing a party, I like to always match my florals and decoration to the food itself. You’ll see this in my book, That Cheese Plate Wants To Party, where every cheese plate has a matching color palette for inspiration. Here’s a custom palette for your Halloween gathering and some links to tablescape ideas!