I'm usually a fan of garlic bread of the boxed variety. You really can't get much more for your money than to spend $1.89 for a box of 8 slices of bread. However there does come a time when you just feel like making something yourself. And really, the loaf of bread cost me $1, the rest of the ingredients I had on hand. Again, this goes back to the fact that I have become a fan of knowing exactly what's in my food (at least 75% of the time.) I've been searching for a good hot, cheesy, bubbly garlic bread to serve as a side with some of my favorite Italian dishes. I tweaked a recipe I found (because Lord knows I can't just leave it alone) and the first time, I'll admit I used a little too much mayo. Second time though...success! It may sound weird to you that you would use mayonnaise on a piece of garlic bread, trust me, I was thinking the same thing. In my mind there were only a few things that needed to be on garlic cheese bread. The garlic, and the cheese. Anything else would just be overkill. Boy was I wrong. The mayo gives it a depth of flavor that really is missing from the plain garlic bread. Try it and you might find yourself in love. And if you are a home cook that likes to throw a boxed lasagna in the oven on a busy night (I don't hate, I appreciate), make this bread on the side. It will really round out the meal and make it feel homemade, because who really has time to make a lasagna and cheesy garlic bread??
Start by mixing your mayo, cheese, green onions, and parsley. Put it off to the side. Even though I know it is hard, you can do it, I know you can.
If your skillet is big enough, you can combine the next couple of steps and do all of your bread at once. I found that it is easier to break it up in to groups. Melt half of your butter in a skillet and add 1 clove of the minced garlic. Be really careful that your heat is hot enough to crisp up the bread, but not so hot that it browns the garlic. Otherwise you'll end up with bitter garlic bread, and that's just plain wrong. I think I had mine at about medium maybe a little lower. Place 1/4 of your loaf cut side down in the skillet and cook, moving the bread around to soak up the butter and garlic. Set the first slice on the baking sheet and repeat with the second.
Spread your cheese mixture evenly over both pieces of bread. How good does this look already???
Bake in the preheated oven at 425° for about 10 minutes or until cheese is hot and bubbly. Slice and serve with your favorite pasta!
Cheesy Garlic Bread
Yield: 4-6 servings
Ingredients:
1/2 loaf French bread
2 cups shredded cheese (I used 1/2 cheddar 1/2 mozzarella, any blend would be great!)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan or Romano
3 Tbsp mayo
2 green onions, finely minced
1 Tbsp dried parsley
1/4 cup butter (1/2 a stick)
2 cloves garlic, minced, divided
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425°. Line baking sheet with aluminum foil or use stoneware (my fave). Slice the 1/2 loaf of French bread in half. So you now have 1/4 of a loaf (confused yet??)
2. Mix cheeses, mayo, and green onions, and parsley. Set aside
3. Melt 2 Tbsp of butter and add 1 clove of garlic in a skillet. Place 1/4 of loaf cut side down in skillet and cook, moving bread around to soak up the butter and garlic. Be careful your garlic doesn't get too brown! Repeat with 2nd slice.
4. Spread cheese mixture on pieces of bread and bake in oven @ 425° for about 10 minutes or until cheese is hot and bubbly.