The BEST Homemade Garlic Bread

5 from 5 vote

The BEST Homemade Garlic Bread

The BEST garlic bread is an easy to make homemade recipe made with an easy to whip up garlic butter, and baked until just crispy. Ready in 15 minutes, and your whole house smells amazing while it's baking away!

Prep Time5

Cook Time15

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Keyword: side dish

Servings: servings (2 slices each)

Calories: 244kcal

Author: Lora

Equipment

1 baking sheet
1 Mixing Bowl

Ingredients

1 pound French or Italian bread
½ cup softened unsalted butter can also use salted
2 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoon minced garlic about 4 large cloves
2 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley optional
½ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

Heat oven: Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
Prep baking sheet and bread: Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
Cut the bread: Slice the loaf into two equal halves, creating two pieces that are each 12 inches long. Next, carefully slice each piece open lengthwise (you'll end up with 4 pieces). Place the bread on the prepped baking sheet cut sides facing up.
Make the garlic butter: In a small bowl, combine the softened butter, olive oil, minced garlic, chopped parsley, and salt. Stir until the mixture is smooth, allowing for a few small lumps of butter.
Spread on the garlic butter: Use a spatula to evenly spread the garlic butter mixture over the top of the bread, coating all the way to the edges of the bread.
Bake garlic bread: Place the baking sheet with the bread in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, until the edges turn a delightful golden brown and become crispy. If you prefer a softer garlic bread, reduce the baking time, and if you prefer a crispier texture, extend the baking time accordingly.
Slice bread: Once done, carefully slice the bread into 2-inch sections and serve it piping hot. Enjoy!

Notes

Bread: Use whatever bread you like. A nice baguette or long rustic Italian loaf works perfectly.
Butter: Use salted or unsalted. The better the quality, the better the flavor of the bread. If you use salted butter, decrease amount of salt you put in the garlic butter. Use margarine to make it dairy-free.
Olive oil: I used extra-virgin olive oil. If you don't have any oil on hand, you could use just butter. The olive oil mixed with the butter makes the mixture a nice texture to spread and adds a bit of depth to the bread. Use just butter, if you prefer.
Garlic: Fresh garlic cloves are ideal. Depending on the size, you may use 2 large cloves or 4 smaller ones. Also, depends on how much garlic you like. Go ahead and add more, if you love it!
Salt: I used sea salt. Use kosher salt, if that's what you have in your pantry. Table salt will be more salty, so use unsalted butter if that what you end up using.

Nutrition