I think one of the best things about ordering pasta at a restaurant is when they bring out the plate of garlic bread. So soft and toasty with that wonderful buttery garlic flavor… mmm! I remember one time when I was younger, going to a restaurant and they asked if we wanted cheese on the garlic bread? I was just a boy at the time but I remember thinking “Really? You can do that?” Of course we ordered it and it was all I could think about as we waited for the meal to be served. I’m pretty sure I got spaghetti and meatballs that day, but really, all I could focus on was that cheesy garlic bread. It was amazing! To think that something as simple as adding melted, gooey and awesome cheese to garlic bread was all my senses could handle.
For weeks I begged my mom to go back to that restaurant for that garlic bread. It was far away and wasn’t one of our regular places, but we decided to try and make it at home with frozen garlic bread and adding some cheese to the top. Well, the result of that wasn’t too good. It just wasn’t the same, something didn’t seem right. A few days later we tried an entirely different approach and that’s the one that was outstanding. And in fact, we still make it to this day.
At almost all supermarkets, french bread loaves are available in the bakery section and are fresh baked that day. They’re also incredibly affordable, usually no more that a couple of bucks for 2 big loaves. Get those! That’s exactly what you want. The other key to making delicious cheesy garlic bread was to actually bake the bread twice – once with the garlic and oil baked in, and again with the cheese. This is important in that it allow the cheese to melt atop already toasted bread, instead of just having a soft gooey mess from doing it all at once. The cheese should be gooey, not the bread.
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6 servings
- 1 French bread loaf
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- Cut French loaf in half lengthwise, then cut in half to make it easier to put in oven.
- Mix olive oil and garlic powder and brush onto top of bread.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes.
- Carefully remove from over and top with mozzarella cheese and bake until melted and golden, about 10-15 more minutes.
- Sprinkle with Italian seasoning or fresh parsley for added flavor.
