Italian-Inspired Cheese Loaf

Kick off the holiday season with a festive Italian-Inspired Cheese Loaf. This appetizer is packed full of all your favorite Italian flavors, similar to an antipasto platter, but in loaf form. Trust me, you are going to be eating with your eyes with this one. When we made it in the Cutco kitchen, we could not believe how much it made, yet we didn’t complain.

Appetizers are my kind of meal and yes, I did say meal. Compared to your basic cheese platters this recipe includes a variety of textures and ingredients. Something that I love about appetizers is that you can use what is already in your pantry. You can even substitute ingredients to match your taste. Regardless of how easy it is, this recipe is one you can change up every time you make it.

Preparing the Ingredients

Before getting started, spray a loaf pan with nonstick spray and line the pan with plastic wrap that overhangs the ends just enough to cover the top of the loaf.

For this recipe we recommend using the 4" Vegetable Knife to finely chop one jar of drained roasted red peppers and a half cup of drained artichoke hearts. Finely chop the olives and finely mince the stalks of green onion.

Using a Cheese Knife, finely chop six ounces of soppressata. This knife is perfect for slicing cured meats because of its exclusive Micro Double-D™ edge. We found that cutting the soppressata while it was cold worked best. As it warms up, it softens a bit making a little harder to cut into small pieces.

In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients until thoroughly combined, adding salt to taste as needed. Then pack the loaf pan with the cheese log mixture, leveling out the top, pressing down to remove air pockets and spreading the loaf into the corners of the pan.

Cover the loaf with plastic wrap that’s draped over the side of the pan and refrigerate for at least four hours or overnight. Once it is ready, place the loaf pan top-side down onto a serving platter to remove the cheese loaf. Then, remove the plastic wrap.

Top the cheese loaf with one jar of sun-dried tomato strips in oil, roughly chopped with the 4" Vegetable Knife.

Pour the oil from the jar over the loaf and garnish the top with parsley and rosemary sprigs.

The cheese loaf is best when served close to room temperature. We recommend serving it with low-sodium crackers, as this recipe calls for many ingredients that already contain enough salt. However, the variety of the different flavors within the loaf balances the saltiness and makes for one delicious spread.

This Italian-Inspired Cheese Loaf is a festive, easy-to-make appetizer that is perfect for any holiday gathering. Each bite contains a variety of colors, flavors and textures that complement one another so well. When shared, be prepared for very little leftovers.