Homemade Garlic Bread

Garlic bread is on repeat in our house—it goes with everything from lasagna to a juicy steak dinner.

This garlic bread recipe starts with a French loaf topped with a buttery spread of garlic and herbs. It’s baked until golden and crispy.

Prepare garlic bread just before serving or well ahead of time.

Homemade Garlic Bread on a cutting board with slices cut

Garlic bread is a favorite for everyone—skip the foil wrapped loaves at the grocery store and prep your own at home!

Homemade tastes better than store-bought, and it’s easy to make!
Add a little or a lot of garlic, the choice is yours!
You can make sure you get that delicious garlic butter all the way to the edges—very important!
Prep ahead in batches and freeze for easy meals or double up on the flavorful garlic butter mixture for quick sides when you need it.

ingredients to make Homemade Garlic Bread

What You’ll Need for Garlic Bread

Bread: My first choice is a loaf of French bread, but you can use any baguette or crusty bread, or even ciabatta rolls, leftover hot dog buns, or hamburger buns.
Butter: I use salted butter; if using unsalted butter, add salt to the butter. Adding oil to the butter adds another layer of flavor and helps make it easy to spread.
Garlic: Fresh is best if you have it. See the recipe notes to replace it with garlic powder.
Herbs: I add parsley because I always have it on hand, and it looks nice. You can skip it if you don’t have any.

Feeling Cheesy? Sprinkle with a bit of Parmesan cheese if you’d like. You can also use finely shredded mozzarella cheese to create cheesy garlic bread. Perfect for sopping up sauce in the bottom of your spaghetti bowl!

Feeling Fancy? If time allows, homemade French bread, sourdough, or baguettes make delicious garlic bread!

adding garlic and parsley to butter to make Homemade Garlic Bread

adding garlic butter to bread to make Homemade Garlic Bread

How to Make Garlic Bread

Buttery, garlicky, perfection—soft inside and a little toasty on the edges.

Mix the garlic butter ingredients (recipe below).
Cut the bread in half lengthwise using a serrated knife and spread each side the butter mixture.
Sprinkle parmesan cheese on both sides if you’d like. This is optional but adds a little crispy, cheesy goodness to it. Bake until toasty.

close up of slices of Homemade Garlic Bread

How to Make Garlic Bread Soft or Crispy

Kind of like baked potatoes, I most often cook this homemade garlic bread without wrapping it in foil as I prefer it to be toasted on the edges and lightly browned.

For a softer garlic bread, after spreading the butter, place the two halves back together and wrap the bread in foil. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until heated through.

As with most garlic bread recipes, this bread can also be grilled to serve alongside any pasta recipe, a bowl of soup, or meatloaf.

How to Prepare Ahead and Freeze

Great news—this easy homemade garlic bread recipe can be prepared ahead of time.

To prepare ahead: Prepare the bread as directed and wrap in plastic wrap. Store in the fridge for up to 2 days before baking.
To Freeze: Prepare the bread as directed and wrap in aluminum foil. Store in the freezer for up to 4 months.
To bake from frozen: Thaw in the fridge overnight and bake as directed. To bake directly from frozen, leave the bread wrapped in foil and bake at 350°F for 28 to 32 minutes or until heated through and the butter is melted.

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Buttery, garlicky, perfection—soft inside and a little toasty on the edges.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

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Preheat oven to 400°F.
In a small bowl, combine butter, olive oil, garlic, and parsley until well mixed.
Using a serrated knife, cut the bread in half lengthwise.
Spread the cut sides of the bread with the garlic butter mixture. Sprinkle with cheese if using. Place the halves, cut side up, on a rimmed baking sheet.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden and toasted. Cut into slices and enjoy.

Use a knife to finely mince the garlic, or use a garlic press.
Garlic powder: Fresh garlic can be replaced with 1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder.
To prepare ahead: Prepare the bread as directed and wrap in plastic wrap. Store in the fridge for up to 2 days before baking.
To Freeze: Prepare the bread as directed and wrap in aluminum foil. Store in the freezer for up to 4 months.
To bake from frozen: Thaw in the fridge overnight and bake as directed. To bake directly from frozen, leave the bread wrapped in foil and bake at 350°F for 28 to 32 minutes or until heated through and the butter is melted.

Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

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