Best Marinated Cheese Recipes

MARINATED GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Place the peppercorns, garlic cloves and bay leaves in a clean, sterilized wide-mouthed jar. Pour in a film of olive oil.
• Cut the goat cheese into rounds 1/2 inch thick (I get neat rounds using unflavored dental floss to cut through the cheese). Place one round in the jar and drizzle on some olive oil. Stack the remaining rounds, drizzling oil onto each round before topping with the next. Add the thyme and rosemary sprigs to the jar and pour in olive oil to cover the goat cheese rounds completely. Cover the jar and leave at room temperature for several hours, then refrigerate.

MARINATED CHEESE

Steps:

• In a jar with a tight fitting lid, combine the olive oil, wine vinegar, pimento, parsley, green onion, garlic, sugar, basil, salt and pepper. Shake vigorously to blend. Set aside.
• Cut the block of Cheddar cheese in half lengthwise. Cut crosswise into 1/4 inch slices to form squares. Repeat with cream cheese. Arrange cheese squares alternately in a shallow baking dish with slices standing on edge. You can arrange in a single long row, or 2 parallel rows depending on the size of your dish. Pour the marinade from the jar over the cheese slices, cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours, or overnight.
• To serve, remove slices to a serving platter so they are still arranged in an alternating pattern. Spoon some of the extra marinade over the cheese, and serve with crackers.

MARINATED OLIVE & CHEESE RING

Steps:

• Cut cream cheese lengthwise in half; cut each half into 1/4-in. slices. On a serving plate, arrange cheeses upright in a ring, alternating cheddar and cream cheese slices. Place olives in center., In a small bowl, whisk vinegar, oil, parsley, basil and garlic until blended; drizzle over cheeses and olives. Sprinkle with pimientos. Refrigerate, covered, at least 8 hours or overnight. Serve with baguette slices.

MARINATED BEET SALAD WITH WHIPPED GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Prepare the beets: Place a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 400 degrees. Place a sheet pan underneath to catch any drips from the beets.
• Trim the greens, tops and stems from the beets. Wash thoroughly and wrap in aluminum foil packages, about 4 beets per package. Place the packages directly on the oven rack and bake until beets are easily pierced by a fork or knife, 45 minutes to 1 hour depending on size. (No need to unwrap the beets to test them.)
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine shallots, oil, vinegar and a lavish sprinkling of salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Remove beets from oven and carefully open packages to let the steam escape. Let cool at least 20 minutes, or up to 4 hours.
• Unwrap beets and use a peeler or your fingers to remove any tough skin. Dice beets neatly into bite-size pieces. Add to bowl with shallot mixture, mix well and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or up to 8 hours. Stir occasionally.
• Meanwhile, in a toaster oven or 350-degree oven, toast nuts until golden, about 5 minutes. If unsalted, sprinkle with salt. Let cool, then coarsely chop.
• Prepare the goat cheese: In a bowl, mix or whisk all ingredients together until smooth. Keep whipping until cheese is fluffy and soft. Taste and season with additional vinegar and salt. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• To serve, pile beets on a serving platter or individual plates. Spoon remaining dressing over the top. Spoon dollops of goat cheese mixture on and around the beets, then tuck in herbs and/or greens. Sprinkle with nuts and serve immediately.

GOAT CHEESE WITH MARINATED ROASTED PEPPERS

Steps:

• Preheat grill to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Grill Anaheim chile peppers, yellow bell pepper, and red bell pepper on the preheated grill with the lid open, turning peppers often, until blistered and blackened, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer peppers to a resealable plastic freezer bag using tongs; seal and let steam loosen skins, about 10 minutes. Carefully open bag, peel peppers, remove and discard seeds, and chop peppers.
• Combine peppers, olive oil, vinegar, and garlic in a bowl until evenly combined; cover with plastic wrap and chill, 8 hours to overnight.
• Place goat cheese on a serving plate; spoon pepper mixture over goat cheese.

MARINATED FLANK STEAK WITH BLUE CHEESE SAUCE

Steps:

• Place the steak pieces between 2 pieces of plastic wrap or parchment and pound to 1/4- inch thickness. Cut into 4 equal pieces, diagonally, against the grain.
• In a small bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, sugar and garlic. Put the steak into a sealable plastic bag with the marinade and let sit for 30 minutes at room temperature, or 1 hour in the refrigerator.
• In the meantime, in a small bowl combine the blue cheese and buttermilk with a fork, mashing until creamy. Stir in the Worcestershire and set aside.
• Spray a large grill pan with cooking spray and preheat over medium-high heat. Cut the onion into 1/4-inch rounds brush both sides with the remaining tablespoon of oil and grill 6 minutes per side. Separate into rings and set aside.
• Remove the meat from the marinade and season both sides with salt and pepper. Discard the marinade. Cook the meat in the grill pan over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes per side for medium rare.
• Arrange 3 radicchio leaves and a pile of onions on each serving plate. Top with a piece of steak. Drizzle with blue cheese sauce and top with a sprinkling of parsley.

MARINATED OLIVES AND FETA CHEESE

Steps:

• Mix all olives, 3/4 cup oil, 3 tablespoons lemon juice, garlic, parsley, lemon peel, 1/2 teaspoon oregano and red pepper in resealable plastic bag. Chill overnight. Place feta on platter. Drizzle with 1/4 cup oil and 3 tablespoons lemon juice. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon oregano and black pepper. Chill at least 2 hours or overnight.
• Place olives and marinade in bowl. Serve olives and feta with pita bread.

MARINATED CHEESE APPETIZER

Steps:

• Cut cheddar cheese and cream cheese into 1/4 inch slices, then again in half.
• Using a small dish, place cheese slices on end alternating cheddar and cream cheese.
• Make the marinade by combining sugar, basil, salt, pepper, oil, vinegar, pimento, parsley, onion and garlic.
• Pour marinade over cheese, cover and refrigerate overnight.
• Serve with crackers.

MARINATED FLANK STEAK WITH BLUE CHEESE SCHMEAR

Steps:

• Trip steak of any excess fat or silver skin.
• Place steak in large zip lock bag.
• Combine marinade ingredients and pour over steak.
• Close bag& press out any air.
• Move steak around in the bag to marinate.
• Refrigerate over night, or at least six hours.
• Mix schmear ingredients in a small bowl until smooth.
• Refrigerate schmear.
• Bring schmear to room temperature one hour before serving.
• Prior to cooking, remove steak from marinade& drain well.
• Grill steak over HOT fire, about 5 minutes a side for rare.
• Place steak on a platter with the side just off the grill up and IMMEDIATELY top with the schmear.
• Spread schmear over steak.
• Let rest 10 minutes before serving.
• Thinly slice at an angle across the grain.
• Spoon sauce& juices back over meat when serving.

BEET AND MARINATED GOAT CHEESE SALAD

Steps:

• For the dressing: Combine the oil, vinegar, apple juice, thyme, pepper, salt and garlic in a small bowl and whisk to blend. Season with additional salt and pepper.
• For the salad: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Place the goat cheese in a medium bowl. Drizzle with just enough dressing to moisten. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Wrap each beet in foil. Place the beets directly onto the oven rack and roast until tender, about 50 minutes. Eight minutes before the beets are tender, place the green beans in a pie dish. Add the oil and a pinch each salt and pepper and toss to coat. Roast the green beans alongside the beets until crisp-tender, about 8 minutes. Remove the foil from the beets and set aside until cool enough to handle. Cut each beet into 6 to 8 wedges.
• Combine the lettuces in a large bowl. Add the green beans and apple slices and top with the beet wedges. Sprinkle the goat cheese on top. Just before serving, pour the dressing over the salad and toss until coated.

MARINATED CHEESE

Steps:

• Slice each block of cheddar cheese into twenty 1/4-in. slices. Cut each block of cream cheese into 18 slices. Create four 6-in.-long blocks of stacked cheeses, sandwiching 9 cream cheese slices between 10 cheddar slices for each stack. Place in a 13x9-in. dish., In a small bowl, combine the roasted peppers, oil, vinegars, onions, herbs, sugar, garlic, salt and pepper; pour over cheese stacks. , Cover and refrigerate overnight, turning cheese blocks once. Drain excess marinade. Serve cheese with crackers or toasted bread.

MARINATED FIG AND GOAT CHEESE CROSTINI

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, combine the goat cheese, olive oil, honey and half of the tarragon, shallots and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper.
• In a separate bowl, toss the figs with the lemon juice, saba vinegar and remaining tarragon, shallots and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper.
• Spread the goat cheese mixture on the crostini, then top with the figs.

MARINATED GOAT CHEESE WITH HERBS AND SPICES

Steps:

• Gently break goat cheese into large pieces; arrange in a serving bowl. Let sit at room temperature while you infuse oil.
• Crush allspice and coriander with the flat side of a chef's knife. Place in a small saucepan along with garlic, orange zest, bay leaves, star anise, oil, and red pepper flakes. Cook over low, swirling pan occasionally, until garlic is golden, 15-20 minutes. Pour over goat cheese. Let sit until cool, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 425°. Arrange bread in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and toast until golden brown around the edges, 5-8 minutes.
• Sprinkle marinated goat cheese with flaky salt and serve with toast.
• Do Ahead
• Goat cheese can be marinated 3 hours ahead. Store lightly covered at room temperature.

MARINATED ASPARAGUS WITH BLUE CHEESE

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, bring 6 cups water to a boil. Add asparagus; cook, uncovered, 2-3 minutes or just until crisp-tender. Remove asparagus and immediately drop into ice water. Drain and pat dry., In a large resealable plastic bag, combine green onions, oil, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper. Add asparagus; seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate at least 1 hour., Drain asparagus, discarding marinade. Place asparagus on a serving plate; sprinkle with cheese.

MARINATED GRILLED SALMON WITH TOMATO, BASIL, AND GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Mix first 10 ingredients in bowl.
• Pour marinade into large freezer bag.
• Marinate fish at least 20 minutes with bag sealed at room temperature.
• Thinly slice the tomato and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Place fish on hot grill. Add salt and pepper to taste. (Fresh ground is preferred).
• As the fish cooks (3-5 minutes per side), use a brush and mop the marinade onto fish.
• Turn salmon a quarter (90 degrees) after a quarter of the way through cooking. (This will give it nice grill cross hatch marks).
• Flip fish half way though cooking. Add salt and pepper to taste to this side as well.
• Continue to baste the fish with marinade. (Try to use all if possible).
• Turn fish another 90 degrees after 3/4 done cooking.
• Before fish is completely cooked, top it with thinly sliced tomato. Top tomato with fresh basil. Top basil with crumbled goat cheese. Shut the grill for a minute or two before taking fish off. Let rest a few minutes and enjoy!
• Feel free to make the marinade to taste. It should be sweet, and salty, and sour. I did not measure anything out when making this dish. I simply tasted it a few times until it was balanced the way I liked it.

GRILLED PESTO MARINATED SKIRT STEAK WITH BLUE CHEESE FONDUE

Steps:

• Soak 15 wooden skewers in cold water for 30 minutes. Heat the grill.
• Thread the meat onto skewers, season with salt and pepper, and coat with the pesto. Grill to desired doneness. You can also cook the meat to medium rare then finish it off in the oven just before the party.
• In a small pan over medium-low heat, cook the butter, thyme, and garlic until the garlic is soft, about 2 minutes. Be careful not to let the garlic brown. Add the cream, raise the heat to medium, and bring the cream to a simmer. Cook until the cream is reduced by 1/3. Lower the heat to maintain a slow simmer. Add the cheese and stir until the cheese is melted and the mixture is smooth. Add the pepper and pour into a fondue pot set over low heat.

MARINATED CHERRY PEPPERS STUFFED WITH HOMEMADE GOAT CHEESE SERVED WITH A PROSCIUTTO AND ARUGULA SALAD

Steps:

• Whisk marinade ingredients together in a non-reactive bowl and set aside.
• With a sharp paring knife, remove stem and core of peppers and dry them well with paper towels.
• In a small bowl, mix goat cheese with salt and pepper, to taste. Carefully fill each pepper with goat cheese and place in a shallow non-reactive casserole dish or bowl. Cover with marinade and refrigerate overnight before serving. (For an interesting twist, dip in beer batter and fry)
• When ready to serve, remove cherry peppers from marinade and set aside. Using a spatula, transfer marinade to a large bowl, add Arugula and sliced onions and toss well to combine. Divide salad between 8 salad plates, top with a piece of proscuitto and garnish with stuffed peppers.
• In a large non-reactive saucepan, combine goat's milk, buttermilk, and rennet. Heat over low heat to 180 degrees. Transfer to a non-reactive bowl and allow to sit overnight, covered, until curd and whey separate. Line a colander with several layers of cheesecloth and ladle curds into colander. Discard whey. Fold cheesecloth over top of curd and allow to drain overnight, refrigerated. Remove from cheesecloth and season to taste with olive oil, salt and pepper.

MARINATED ROASTED PEPPERS, OLIVES AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Set oven control to broil.
• Broil bell peppers with tops about 5 inches from heat, turning occasionally, until skin is blistered and evenly browned. Place peppers in a plastic bag and close tightly. Let stand 20 minutes.
• Remove skin, stems, seeds and membranes from peppers. Cut peppers into 1/4-inch strips. Place peppers, olives and cheese in glass bowl or jar.
• Shake remaining ingredients in tightly covered container; pour over pepper mixture. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours to blend flavors, stirring occasionally.
• Store tightly covered in refrigerator up to 2 weeks.

SARA'S SOY MARINATED AND CREAM CHEESE-STUFFED SALMON

Steps:

• Stir together the soy sauce, honey, 2 tablespoons mustard, ginger, garlic, and red pepper flakes in a medium bowl. Arrange the salmon fillets in a shallow dish. Pour the marinade over the salmon, turning fillets to coat both sides. Cover, and refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the salmon stuffing by combining the cream cheese, green onions, and 1/2 teaspoon mustard in a small bowl. Refrigerate until ready to cook the salmon.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a baking dish with foil, and lightly grease foil.
• Remove salmon from marinade. Cut a slit in the thickest part of each fillet to make a small pocket. Spoon cream cheese mixture into the pocket. Place salmon in prepared baking dish.
• Cook salmon in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven; spoon teriyaki sauce over fillets and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Reduce heat to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Cook until fish is easily flaked with a fork, about 5 minutes more.

MARINATED BEETROOT WITH GRILLED GOAT'S CHEESE

Steps:

• Mix the oil, vinegar, sugar and thyme in a shallow dish and season well. Add the sliced beetroot and marinate for at least 1 hr or overnight, if you like.
• Heat grill to high. Season the goat's cheese slices, then place on an oiled baking tray and grill for 2-3 mins until golden and melting.
• Lift out the beetroot, reserving the marinade, and divide between 4 plates. Top with the rocket, a round of goat's cheese and a little more rocket. Drizzle with the marinade and serve.