Three words hold the keys to my heart: Cheesy. Garlic. Bread.
Seriously, if there’s one thing I think I could eat every single day and it would not get old, it’s dough, covered in melted cheese, and slathered in a butter garlic sauce. I sprinkle mine with parsley to throw in something green and for a pop of brightness.
Making cheesy garlic bread really begins with the dough. You want a really good quality pizza dough, that is heavy in olive oil. This gives the dough flavor, but also creates a very moist and tender crumb, without tasting greasy.
From the dough, you need some really good mozzarella cheese. You can always. Pre-shredded cheese is often coated in a starch so it doesn’t stick together in the bag, and can be dry and not as melty. I recommend buying a brick, and shredding it yourself. You do want a low moisture mozzarella, don’t try to shred a ball of mozzarella that has been sitting in brine. Save that to slice up to put on your next Margarita pizza.
What really makes this cheese bread is the buttery garlic sauce. Ideally, use good quality butter and fresh garlic. When you melt the butter with the fresh garlic, it dulls the potency of the allicin which gives garlic that super pungent flavor. But ultimately, you can make the garlic butter with butter and granulated garlic if you have to. I recommend about 1 Tablespoon of granulated garlic if you need to go that route.
Don’t have fresh parsley to chop up and sprinkle on top. I’ve got you covered there too! You can use dried, it won’t be nearly as flavorful as fresh though, or you can skip it all together. Your call.
Get Your Dunk On!
This is the perfect snack for dipping and dunking. You will likely have leftover garlic butter, and it’s a super good dip so it doesn’t go to waste. My other favorites are a quality marinara or ranch. I am from the Midwest after all. We put ranch on everything.
Whatever you choose to dunk this cheesy garlic bread in, I think you’ll agree, this recipe is a winner. You’ll be pulling it out for pizza night, super bowl parties, and just when you want to satisfy your cravings for all things cheesy and garlicy. Make sure you let me know if you try it in the comments!
And if you like this snack/appetizer, you might want to check out my recipe for Gluten Free Hush Puppies (you can use regular flour for them if you aren’t gluten free).
The Best Ever Cheesy Garlic Bread
Ingredients
Dough
- 1¼ cups Warm water (between 98-110 degrees)
- 1½ teaspoons Granulated sugar
- 1½ teaspoons Yeast
- 3½ cups Bread Flour
- ¼ cup Olive Oil plus extra for greasing the pan and bowl
- 2 teaspoons Salt
Toppings
- 8 oz Shredded Mozzarella
- 4 Tbsp Salted Butter
- 5 cloves Garlic pasted/grated
- 1 bunch Fresh Parsley chopped
Instructions
- Measure out the warm water in a 2 cup liquid measuring cup.
- Mix the sugar into the warm water until dissolved.
- Sprinkle the yeast across the top of the water/sugar mixture, and gently stir.
- Set the yeast/sugar/water mixture aside for about 5 to 10 minutes until it "blooms" i.e. gets foamy and fragrant.
- Meanwhile, add the flour to the bowl of a stand mixer.
- Make three separate divots or pockets into the flour, on the outer edge of the bowl.
- In one pocket, put the salt
- Another pocket, the olive oil.
- And lastly, the third pocket the yeast mixture.
- Fit the mixer with a dough hook attachment, and turn on "stir" or one to knead for 8-10 minutes.
- When the dough is combined, and elastic, remove the dough from the bowl.
- Use olive oil to grease the inside of the bowl, and return the dough.
- Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel or plastic wrap, and set in a warm place to rise for 1 hour.
- When the dough has doubled in size, oil a large baking sheet.
- Preheat oven to 425°F
- While the oven is preheating, press the dough into a large rectangle on the baking sheet.
- Use a fork to poke holes over the entire dough rectangle.
- Top with shredded mozzarella cheese.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes until the crust is lightly browned, and the cheese is melty, bubbly, and starting to brown in spots.
- While the dough is baking, add the garlic and butter to a small microwave safe bowl, and microwave for about 1 minute, until the butter is completely melted. (You can also melt the butter and cook the garlic in a small saucepan on the stove over medium heat, if microwaves aren't your thing.)
- When the dough is baked, remove from the oven.
- Use a pastry or basting brush, and brush the warm butter and garlic mixture over the hot cheese and dough.
- Allow to cool approximately 5 minutes, sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley, slice, and serve with your favorite dips. See my suggestions above.
