Local Artist Feature: Marissa Mullen
The Local Artists series features artists, activists, and change-makers within the Northeastern community. Exploring the journeys and recent projects of these talented students, faculty, and alumni, each article shines the spotlight on one artist and allows readers to look no further than our university for sources of inspiration.
By Lifestyle Columnist, Anita Goharfar
Conquering the World, One Cheese Plate at a Time
Whether during a pre-pandemic dinner party or in quarantine with a bottle of white wine, you have probably attempted to put together a few squares of gouda, a handful of blueberries, carefully sliced apples, and a few crackers on your fanciest plate. But this isn’t a snack; it’s a craft — and during the pandemic, it is self-care.
For food-fluencer, entrepreneur, and author Marissa Mullen, cheese plates have been a staple in her life. Growing up, Marissa was always on appetizer duty, putting together a few artisanal cheeses, a couple crackers, and a sprig of rosemary on a simple cutting board for friends and family. “I’ve always loved cheese, and making these plates was a fun way for me to express my creativity while bringing friends together,” Marissa explains. And of course she brought her culinary skills to college, where between classes, co-op, and exploring Boston, no-cook meals were a necessity.
Featuring Artist, Marissa Mullen
During her time at Northeastern, Marissa began to document her plates on Instagram. The result was @ThatCheesePlate, which combined her passion for photography and the expertise she picked up working at The Salty Pig in Back Bay. Today @ThatCheesePlate, which has over 250k followers, is “a peaceful place for cheese and charcuterie inspiration” where you can find beautifully crafted boards, Cheese By Numbers illustrations that show you how to put together an elegant and delicious plates, and snapshots from Marissa’s new book, “That Cheese Plate Will Change Your Life.”
But the path to becoming a food-fluencer and cheese-crafting icon was not a straightforward one for Marissa. At Northeastern, she majored in Music Business with a minor in Communications. Her first co-op was at the Nettwerk Music Group, an artist management company that taught her valuable lessons about social media, content creation, and marketing campaigns — the business side of an artistic endeavor. For her second co-op, Marissa went to New York to work in the music department of The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. “The internship was the perfect blend between production and entertainment and I loved the fast-paced environment,” Marissa said. So of course, after graduation, Marissa joined The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as the personal assistant to house band leader Jon Batiste, where her knowledge of music and passion for entertainment began to come to fruition.
Early on in her career, @ThatCheesePlate was a side hustle. Like many influencers and social media icons, Marissa eventually had to consider how she could support herself from Instagram alone. “I was very busy, but when I did have time off, making a cheese plate turned into my form of self-care. I would put on some soothing music in my apartment and enter the creative zone. When you’re cutting cucumbers, you can’t be scrolling through the news!” Marissa recounted.
It was not until a few years later when Marissa entered the cheese world full time. In December 2018, The Rachel Ray Show stumbled upon @ThatCheesePlate. The Today Show and Vox.com followed, and by March 2019, Marissa was offered a book deal. “Once I was offered a book deal, I made the decision to leave my job. I was nervous that I might be taking a step back. However, once I started writing my book, I knew that it was the right choice,” she explained.
For most cheese plate amateurs, putting together a plate is a question of what’s in the pantry, which cheeses are still good, and how many raspberries can be spared. But for a food-fluencer like Marissa, charcuterie requires technical knowledge. In perfecting her craft, she visited cheese shops and dairy farms, experimented with proportions and combinations, and looked to cheesemongers like Erika Jubrick and Anne Saxleby for inspiration. “With building a cheese plate, practice makes perfect.” In developing her business, Marissa turned to her former boss John Batiste, Chrissy Teigen, Emma Chamberlain, and Sophia Roe. From them, she was inspired to transform her growing Instagram, @ThatCheesePlate, into a powerful brand.
Now, Marissa Mullen is a role model herself, especially to the young women looking to enter the entertainment, businesses, and food industry. As a Northeastern alumna and successful businesswoman, she reminds us that where there is passion and hard-work, there is success. Her advice to Northeastern students hoping to enter the media and businesses industries is, “Don’t give up! I see failure as an invitation for growth. Taking the leap from my corporate job was definitely scary, but I learned to adapt. If you feel like something isn’t working, make an effort to change it!”
Like every entrepreneur, Marissa has had to overcome some challenges, navigating through moldy cheddar and broken pretzels. In January 2020, Marissa had planned a sixteen-city book tour that was to follow the May release of her book, That Cheese Plate Will Change Your Life. But as the country was devastated by the pandemic, her book tour was cancelled. “I was discouraged at first, but it forced me to adapt and adjust,” said Marissa. “I started teaching virtual workshops and hosting live happy hours on Instagram with special guests,” Marissa describes. She even grew her first herb garden during the summer months and introduced small-format boards to her culinary collection to encourage people to remain connected through food while social distancing.
If you’re looking to try out Marissa’s cheese boards but wondering how to do so in a dorm or apartment, here’s a few tips from her for creating delectable plates on a college student’s budget:
The Cheese By Numbers Method is separated into six steps. These are your ingredient categories:
1. Cheese
2. Meat
3. Produce
4. Crunch
5. Dip
6. GarnishShop at places like Trader Joe’s or Aldi for more affordable ingredients.
Spend money on good cheese and supplement with cheaper accoutrements.
Pre-cut your hard cheese, fold your meats, and serve with necessary utensils so your guests don’t have to do any of the hard work
Check out https://www.thatcheeseplate.com/ and @ThatCheesePlate for inspiration!
Links:
Marissa Mullen - https://www.instagram.com/marissamullen/?hl=en
@ThatCheesePlate - https://www.instagram.com/thatcheeseplate/?hl=en
Cheese By Numbers - https://www.instagram.com/CheeseByNumbers/?hl=en
That Cheese Plate Will Change Your Life - https://www.thatcheeseplate.com/thebook/
