Do You Like Your Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy ? With This Recipe, You Can Have Both (2024)

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Here are two easy methods for making garlic bread: toasted or broiled.

By

Elise Bauer

Do You Like Your Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy ? With This Recipe, You Can Have Both (1)

Elise Bauer

Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.

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Updated January 21, 2024

Do You Like Your Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy ? With This Recipe, You Can Have Both (2)

33 ratings

What would spaghetti be without a side of buttery garlic bread?

There are several methods and twists for making garlic bread, the easiest being just rubbing a cut clove of garlic over toasted slices of Italian or French bread, and spreading the toast with olive oil or butter.

Here are a couple of methods that make wonderful garlic bread, depending on how you like it, either toasty or soft.

Do You Like Your Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy ? With This Recipe, You Can Have Both (3)

Toasty or Soft Garlic Bread?

The methods for making toasty garlic bread or soft garlic bread are slightly different:

  • Crispy, toasty garlic bread gets sliced in half down its length, spread with butter and garlic, and then baked open-faced in the oven. Broil it at the end for extra crispiness.
  • Soft garlic bread gets sliced like an accordion (slice as if cutting slices, but don't go all the way through), then slather the butter mixer between the slices. Wrap the bread up in foil, then bake. This will keep the bread soft while infusing garlicky-butter into each slice.

Do You Like Your Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy ? With This Recipe, You Can Have Both (4)

Make Ahead (And Even Freezing!)

Crispy or soft, garlic bread is really at its best eaten right out of the oven. The leftovers don't keep particularly well.

If you'd like to make garlic bread ahead, you could prep the garlic bread up to the baking stage, then wrap in foil and store in the freezer for up to three months. This makes a great housewarming gift or for new parents, especially paired with a batch of frozen meatballs and sauce.

  • To reheat crispy garlic bread, unwrap the bread and place the halves buttered side up on a baking sheet. Cover loosely with foil and bake until the bread is warmed through and the butter starting to melt. Remove the foil and continue baking and broiling as directed.
  • To reheat soft garlic bread, loosen the foil a little bit so it's not so tightly wrapped but still enclosed in foil, then place the bread in the oven and bake until warmed through.

Our Favorite Dishes to Serve With Garlic Bread

  • The Best Homemade Lasagna
  • Chicken Piccata
  • Eggplant Parmesan
  • Baked Spaghetti
  • Italian Meatballs

Do You Like Your Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy ? With This Recipe, You Can Have Both (5)

The Best Garlic Bread

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time13 mins

Total Time18 mins

Servings4to 8 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 16-ounce (450 g) loaf Italian bread or French bread

  • 1/2 cup (1 stick, 112 g) unsalted butter, softened

  • 2 large cloves garlic, smashed and minced

  • 1 heaping tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

  • 1/4 cup (25 g) freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Method

Method 1: Toasted Garlic Bread

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

  2. Prepare the garlic bread:

    Cut the loaf in half, horizontally. Mix the butter, garlic, and parsley together in a small bowl. Spread butter mixture over the the two bread halves.

    Do You Like Your Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy ? With This Recipe, You Can Have Both (6)

  3. Heat in the oven for 10 minutes:

    Place on a sturdy baking pan (one that can handle high temperatures, not a cookie sheet) and heat in a 350°F (175°C) oven for 10 minutes.

  4. Sprinkle with Parmesan (optional) and broil:

    Remove pan from oven. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over bread if you want. Return to oven on the highest rack.

    Broil on high heat for 2 to 3 minutes until the edges of the bread begin to toast and the cheese (if you are using cheese) bubbles. Watch very carefully while broiling. The bread can easily go from un-toasted to burnt.

  5. Slice:

    Remove from oven, let cool a minute. Remove from pan and use a bread knife to cut into 1-inch thick slices. Serve immediately.

    Do You Like Your Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy ? With This Recipe, You Can Have Both (7)

Method 2: Soft Garlic Bread

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

    Make the butter, garlic, parsley mixture as above

  2. Slice the bread and insert butter mixture:

    Make 1-inch thick slices into the bread, but do not go all the way through, just to the bottom crust. Put a teaspoon or two of the butter mixture between each slice, or between every other slice if you only want the garlic mixture on one side of the bread.

    Do You Like Your Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy ? With This Recipe, You Can Have Both (8)

  3. Bake the garlic bread:

    Wrap the bread in aluminum foil and heat for 15 minutes in the 350°F (175°C) oven, until the butter has melted and the bread is warmed.

  4. Serve:

    To serve, remove from foil and present the loaf wrapped in a clean tea towel. Tear off slices to eat.

    Did you enjoy this recipe? Let us know with a rating and review!

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
254Calories
13g Fat
28g Carbs
5g Protein

×

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4to 8
Amount per serving
Calories254
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 13g17%
Saturated Fat 7g35%
Cholesterol 30mg10%
Sodium 311mg14%
Total Carbohydrate 28g10%
Dietary Fiber 2g7%
Total Sugars 2g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 1mg4%
Calcium 49mg4%
Iron 2mg9%
Potassium 71mg2%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.

Do You Like Your Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy ? With This Recipe, You Can Have Both (2024)

FAQs

How do you soften crispy garlic bread? ›

In the oven: Preheat oven to 200° or Warm setting. Wrap the bread in a damp (not soaking) towel, place on a baking sheet, and pop it in the oven for 5-10 minutes. In the microwave: Wrap the bread in a damp (not soaking) towel, place it on a microwave-safe dish, and microwave on high for 10 seconds.

How do you enjoy garlic bread? ›

Traditionally garlic bread is dunked in the tomato sauce served with pasta or goes well with a hot bowl of soup or on its own. Some of our favorite pasta dish to serve this is Italian pasta, mac and cheese, tomato pasta or white sauce pasta.

Why is garlic bread so delicious? ›

It has fresh herbs, tons of flavorful roasted garlic, and is perfectly toasted. This easy garlic bread recipe is delicious served with your fav pasta dishes & comfort foods, and is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser!

What is the difference between garlic bread and garlic toast? ›

Garlic bread (also called garlic toast) consists of bread (usually a baguette, sour dough, or bread such as ciabatta), topped with garlic and occasionally olive oil or butter and may include additional herbs, such as oregano or chives. It is then either grilled until toasted or baked in a conventional or bread oven.

What makes bread soft? ›

When you add milk to your dough, the lactose (milk sugar) will add a subtle sweetness to your bread, and the milk proteins will increase its nutritional value. Better still, the milk fats help retain carbon monoxide gases during baking, so your loaf comes out softer.

How to make your bread crispy? ›

The best way to brown and crisp your bread's bottom crust – as well as enhance its rise – is to bake it on a preheated pizza stone or baking steel. The stone or steel, super-hot from your oven's heat, delivers a jolt of that heat to the loaf, causing it to rise quickly.

How would you describe garlic bread? ›

Garlic bread is a perfect accompaniment to soak up the extra red sauce on your plate – you can't beat a slice of bread infused with buttery garlic flavor. This delicacy is also often infused with cheese and herbs.

How do you keep garlic bread warm and crispy? ›

OVEN: Wrap leftover Garlic Bread in foil and place on a baking sheet – you can do this whether it's sliced or a whole loaf. If the bread is sliced, keep it in a single layer in the foil. Bake at 350 degrees F until warmed through, about 10 to 15 minutes.

Does garlic bread get soggy? ›

Problem: Garlic bread is often soggy, with too much raw garlic flavor. Goal: Crisp garlic bread, with sweet, nutty garlic flavor. Solution: Toast whole garlic cloves for optimal flavor, add a bit of Parmesan cheese, and slice the loaf of bread horizontally.

Is garlic bread good or bad? ›

Garlic bread's benefits depend on the type of bread used to make it. Wheat garlic bread is loaded with healthy fibre and nutrients that regulate blood sugar levels and boost metabolism. Most garlic bread recipes are high in fat, but a few minor adjustments can make this tasty appetizer very healthy.

Why is garlic so tasty? ›

Garlic are members of the allium family, and like most alliums, contain a number of pungent chemical compounds that attack our taste buds and olfactory receptors, inciting them to perk up and pay attention. They don't just have flavor on their own, they make other things taste better as well. At least to an extent.

What is a interesting fact about garlic bread? ›

Garlic bread is widely popular across Europe, and is available in many different food shops and restaurants.
  • In German-speaking countries, it is known as Knoblauchbrot.
  • In Greece, garlic bread often contains olives and onions.
  • In France, it was common in Provence, where it was called chapon and served with salad.
Oct 16, 2023

Why is Texas toast thick? ›

One Pig Stand location in Beaumont, Texas supposedly ordered thicker white bread in an effort to “wow” customers. However, the result was too large to fit in the restaurant's toasters. Instead of throwing it away, Royce Hailey decided to butter and grill the bread on both sides to serve.

Why is it called Texas toast? ›

As for this crusty delicacy's origins, the name suggests that Texas toast is a Texas thing, and while the definitive history of Texas toast has yet to be written, it is said to have been the 1941 invention of Royce Hailey at Beaumont's Pig Stand drive-in restaurant.

How do you make bread less crispy? ›

But one really simple thing you can do is just put the loaf into a plastic bag after it has finished cooling down. So maybe 2-3 hours after it comes out of the oven, just put the loaf into a plastic bag and leave it in there. The crust will soften due to the internal moisture content.

How do you soften crispy flatbread? ›

If you want to make stale bread soft again, wrap the bread in foil. If the crust of the bread is very hard, sprinkle a little water on the outside before you close the foil. Place the bread in a 300°F oven for 5-15 minutes or until the bread feels soft. If you added water, heat the bread until it no longer feels soggy.

What causes crispy bread to become soft or soggy? ›

Adjust the water amount slightly

As the loaf cools, any moisture which is left in the loaf escapes through the crust as steam and this is what causes the softening. You can help to prevent this from happening by reducing the water content of the loaf.

Why is my garlic bread soggy? ›

Adding already-melted butter to your pieces of bread can often result in a soggy texture because the bread absorbs too much moisture before going into the oven, which makes it much harder to achieve that crunchy, toasted top layer on each piece.

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