Marinated Cheese Tray-Cheddar, Monterey Jack, & Cream Cheese Platter

This delicious marinated cheese tray makes a beautiful appetizer, perfect for entertaining.

This cheese platter combines cheddar, cream cheese, and Monterey Jack cheese and is marinated in fresh herbs.

It is scrumptious and well presented.

This recipe came from a dear friend, Lori Moshenski.

I believe she originally found the recipe in Southern Living Magazine, but I can't be sure.

Southern Living is a staple magazine in every Southerner's house.

It is an amazing resource for beautiful Southern interior design inspirations, fantastic recipes, and restaurant reviews!

I use it to scope out great vacation spots, places to dine, and party planning recipes.

I love Southern Living Magazine so much I have a small collection of special issues that I have kept that date back over 20 years! Yikes, I am getting old....

How to make it

Assembling this cheese platter is rather easy. Follow these steps to make this beautiful cheese platter presentation:

1. Cut cheese in half lengthwise.
2. Then cut each half into ¼ in thick square slices. Cream Cheese is a slightly different shape. Compare the other cheeses to cream cheese to get a correct cutting size. You want all the cheese slices to be the same size and shape.
3. Arrange cheese slices alternately on a shallow serving dish standing each slice on its edge.
4. Mix together remaining marinade ingredients in in a jar. Shake well. Pour marinade over cheese.
5. Cover and chill 6 to 8 hours to marinate.
6. Allow 15 minutes at room temperature before serving for the best results in flavor.

How do you cut the cheese for the cheese platter?

Cutting the cheese is the hardest part of this recipe, but don't let it intimidate you.

After splitting the Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese down the middle in half, I make my first slice about ¼ in thick.

I use this piece to guide me in cutting the rest to keep a similar size. The cream cheese is a bit more trickier because it is a different shape.

I have found that if I slice about a ¼ inch lengthwise off the cream cheese and then split it in half, it will be about the same shape as the other two cheeses.

Helpful tips

Tip:  When making the marinade, put all of it in a large mason jar, shake it up, and pour. This allows you to evenly pour the topping on the cheese.

Tip: It is important to use fresh herbs, not dry herbs in this recipe.

Tip: Don't panic if the cheese shapes are not perfectly the same. Just do your best to come close. When the marinade is poured on top, it hides the imperfections.

What should you serve with a cheese platter?

This marinated cheese tray has become a signature staple for most of my larger dinner parties.  

It is a great filler, very inexpensive to make, looks stunning, and is always gone at the end of the night.

It is a wonderful starter for my baked spaghetti,  and it is stunning on an antipasto board.

I personally think Ritz and Triscuits are a tasty compliment to the marinade flavors, but you can go more fancy if you prefer.

You can serve the cheese platter standing alone or place an assortment of crackers to the side to accompany the cheese.

I usually have a set of toothpicks available to the side for easy grazing also.

Please leave me a comment below if you make this marinated cheese tray and tell me what you think about it. I would love to hear back, and so would my readers.

Also post your picture of your beautiful tray on Instagram or Facebook, and tag @aforkstale with #aforkstale hashtags! I will share with my followers! xoxo!

If you like this recipe, try some of these:

• Dill Pickle Dip
• Candy Bar Cream Cheese Fruit Dip
• Port Wine Cheese Ball
• Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese Cucumber Bites