Garlic Bread · Cheesy
Cheesy Garlic Bread
Garlic butter bread topped with melty mozzarella and Parmesan, baked until bubbling and browned in spots. A favorite with lasagna, soup or all on its own.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 16 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Serves
- 8
- Level
- Easy
Ingredients
- 1 lb crusty bread, one Italian or French loaf
- ⅜ cup unsalted butter, softened
Swaps for unsalted butter
Instead of butter
- Salted butter: The same amount, with about ¼ tsp less salt per stick (½ cup) elsewhere in the recipe. Nothing noticeable once you cut the salt.
- Plant-based butter sticks: The same amount. The closest swap.
- Refined coconut oil: The same amount: solid when the butter is soft or cold, melted when it is melted. It is all fat, so bakes are a bit more tender and rich, with no butter flavor.
Cooking for an allergy? Check every label.
- 4 cloves garlic, finely grated or minced
Swaps for garlic
Instead of garlic
- Garlic powder: ⅛ tsp for each clove. Mellower and sweeter, with no bite.
- Jarred minced garlic: ½ tsp for each clove. Milder and slightly sour from the preserving liquid.
- ½ tsp Italian seasoning
Swaps for Italian seasoning
Instead of Italian seasoning
- Homemade blend: For 1 tsp: ½ tsp dried oregano, ¼ tsp dried basil, ¼ tsp dried thyme (a pinch of rosemary if you have it). The same thing.
- Herbes de Provence: The same amount. Similar, often with lavender; a little more floral.
- Dried oregano alone: The same amount. Stronger and simpler.
- ¼ tsp kosher salt
Swaps for kosher salt
Instead of salt
- Table salt or fine sea salt: About half as much as Diamond Crystal kosher, about ¾ as much as Morton kosher. The same saltiness when measured this way.
- Salt by weight: 1 tsp is about 6 grams of table salt, 5 grams of Morton kosher, 3 grams of Diamond Crystal kosher. The most reliable way to swap, especially in baking and brines.
- 1 ½ cups mozzarella, shredded ≈ 168 g
- ⅓ cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated ≈ 33 g
Swaps for Parmesan cheese
Instead of parmesan
- Pecorino Romano: The same amount. Sharper and saltier (it is made from sheep's milk), so go easy on other salt.
- Grana Padano: The same amount. Milder and a little softer, very close otherwise.
- Nutritional yeast: 2 tbsp for each ¼ cup grated parmesan. Nutty and cheesy, but it doesn't melt or brown.
Cooking for an allergy? Check every label.
- 1 tbsp parsley, chopped
Swaps for parsley
Instead of parsley
- Dried parsley: 1 tsp dried for each 1 tbsp chopped fresh (a third as much). Very mild; it adds color more than flavor.
- Cilantro: The same amount. Stronger and citrusy; suits Mexican and Asian dishes.
- Celery leaves or chervil: The same amount. Celery leaves are peppery and grassy; chervil is mild with a hint of anise.
Cooking for a crowd? Pans, timing and salt for 12 to 50.
Missing something? Tap Swaps next to an ingredient, or see all substitutions.
Steps
- Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C) with a rack in the middle.400°F
- In a bowl, mash the butter, garlic, Italian seasoning and salt with a fork until evenly mixed.
- the loaf in half horizontally and spread the garlic butter over both cut sides to the edges.
Slice (how to slice)
Slice Cut food into flat pieces of the same thickness. 1. Give round food a flat side to sit on.2. Hold it with your fingertips curled under.3. Cut with long strokes, pushing the knife forward and down rather than straight down.4. Move your guiding hand back the same distance each time so every slice matches. Done when: The slices are even. For meat, slicing across the grain (across the lines of muscle) gives the tenderest bite. Safety: Keep the fingertips of your guiding hand curled under, knuckles toward the blade, and set the board on a damp towel so it can't slide. Slice hot roasts on a board with a groove for the juices.How to slice evenly: mistakes to avoid - Set the halves cut side up on a sheet pan and bake until the edges just start to crisp.400°F⏱ Bake: 8 min
- Take the pan out and scatter the mozzarella and Parmesan evenly over the bread.
- Bake until the cheese is fully melted and bubbling.400°F⏱ Melt cheese: 6 min
- For browned spots,⏱ Broil: 1 min 30 sec, watching closely, until the cheese is golden in places.
broil (how to broil)
Broil Cook or brown food with strong heat from the top of the oven, like an upside-down grill. 1. Move an oven rack so the food will sit 3 to 6 inches from the heat.2. Turn the broiler on and give it a few minutes to heat.3. Use a metal pan (never glass that isn't broiler-safe) and put the food in.4. Stay at the oven and check every minute; things go from brown to burnt fast.5. Turn the food if the recipe says to. Done when: The top is browned and bubbly or charred in spots, usually in 1 to 5 minutes. Safety: Don't use parchment or wax paper under the broiler; it can catch fire. Use foil or a bare pan.How to broil: mistakes to avoid - Sprinkle with parsley, let it sit a couple of minutes so the cheese sets, then slice and serve.
Tap an underlined word for how to do it, or see all techniques.
Tips
- Baking the garlic butter first keeps the bread from going soggy under the cheese.
- Cut with a serrated knife if you have one. It goes through the crust without squishing the cheese.
Storage
Refrigerate leftovers up to 3 days. Reheat in a 375°F oven for 6 to 8 minutes.
How long leftovers keep, and freezing and reheating: leftovers and storage.
Quick answers
Answered from this recipe's own storage, make-ahead and swap notes.
Estimated nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 310 1,300 kJ
- Protein
- 12 g
- Carbohydrates
- 31 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sugars
- 3 g
- Fat
- 16 g
- Saturated fat
- 9 g
- Sodium
- 570 mg
Whole recipe, 8 servings: about 2,510 calories.
Estimate from USDA FoodData Central; not medical or dietary advice. Based on 8 of 8 ingredients.
How we estimate
We add up USDA FoodData Central values for each measured ingredient as written and divide by the recipe's 8 servings, so changing the servings or units here doesn't change a serving. Brands, swaps, trimming and cooking all change the real numbers.
Estimated cost
About $0.90 a serving
About $7.35 for the recipe as written (8 servings).
Estimate; prices vary by store and region. U.S. average prices for September 2026 from BLS Average Price Data and USDA ERS Purchase to Plate prices updated with the BLS Consumer Price Index. Priced: 6 of 8 ingredients, 100% by weight.
How we estimate
Each measured ingredient is weighed as in the nutrition estimate and priced at the U.S. average: BLS's average price where BLS publishes one, else USDA ERS's Purchase to Plate price for 2017-18 raised to September 2026 with the CPI for that food group. Whole packages, store brands, sales and regions all change the real cost: treat it as a ballpark.
- crusty bread $3.40 ERS
- mozzarella $2.25 ERS
- Parmesan cheese $0.80 ERS
- unsalted butter $0.75 BLS
- garlic $0.15 ERS
- parsley $0.05 ERS
Not priced (no official average price we can match, so not in the total): Italian seasoning, kosher salt.
More dishes for less: cheap eats.
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Cleanup score 4/5 (easy cleanup): 2 things to wash, sheet pan, mixing bowl.
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