This Cheese and Garlic Crack Bread is EPIC! “Crack bread” is an appropriate name for this because it’s garlic bread – on crack…..
It’s basically a cheesy garlic bread, but so much more fun AND delicious! Cheese, garlic and bread – in pull apart bread form. You can’t go wrong. Guaranteed to be the most popular thing at any gathering you take it to!
A CHEESY PULL APART GARLIC BREAD
“You will never be able to look at garlic bread the same again….”
If you haven’t tried this Cheese and Garlic Crack Bread before, let me warn you now: garlic bread will never be the same again. It’s like a pull apart bread, but tastes like garlic bread plus you have the mozzarella cheese which stretches wonderfully as you pull bits off.
This is INSANELY delicious. I especially love the way the bread is cut into diamond shapes so you can tear bite size pieces off. Every piece is garlicky and buttery and oh-so-cheesy…….
“Kids go NUTS over this…. and adults turn INTO kids when they get stuck into this!!”
This is one the kids go NUTS over, don’t say I didn’t warn you! And grown ups turn into little kids when they get stuck into this. I made this for a dinner and let me tell you, it took 5 hands about 30 seconds to demolish this!
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST CHEESY BREAD IN THE WORLD!
Best bread – The best bread to use for Cheese and Garlic Crack Bread is crusty sourdough or another dense type of bread, but it works well with plain crusty loaves as well.
The reason it works better with sourdough is because the bread is denser so the bread tends to hold together better when you pull bits off. But believe me, there is no compromise on flavour if you use other types of bread! In fact, in the photo I chose to use a crusty Vienna loaf because it was on special.
Best cheese – I really recommend using mozzarella cheese for this, you want it to stretch and pull when you tear the pieces off.
Other flavourings – I kept the flavours quite simple, going for a garlic bread with cheese, but you can go really wild with the flavours for this! Ranch dressing, kick of chilli, other herbs – the possibilities are endless!
When it comes out of the oven, it’s all golden, crusty and buttery on the inside and you know that’s just the start of the eating experience that’s about to commence….
….then the devouring begins…. that cheesy pull! That buttery, garlicky bread!! And yet, and yet, there’s even more to come….
THE BASE IS THE BEST BIT!!
Everybody goes so nuts over the cheese bits that you pull out, but my favourite part is the base of the bread. All the butter and cheese drips to the bottom and it bakes so nice and crispy…..
PULL APART BREAD for parties!
This is a great centrepiece for a dinner that could just be accompanied by a fresh salad to make a complete meal. Or as a fabulous appetiser or party food – think game day!
It’s by far the most requested party food by my family and friends. I usually make it at home then take it to the venue and bake it there. The best way to make ahead is to use softened butter instead of melted butter and slather it into the cracks, then stuff with cheese. Wrap and bake before serving.
But you can even bake it in advance then reheat quickly in the microwave as long as you use a crusty sourdough. The crust gets so crusty when you bake it, it stays crusty even if you reheat it in the microwave.
Go forth and enjoy! Make this cheesy garlic bread once, and you’ll be asked to make it again and again and again…. – Nagi x
CHEESE and GARLIC CRACK BREAD
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Cheese and Garlic Crack Bread (Pull Apart Bread)
Ingredients
- 1 crusty loaf , preferably sourdough or Vienna
- 1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese (or other melting cheese)
Garlic Butter
- 100 g / 1 stick (8 tbsp) unsalted butter , softened
- 2 large garlic cloves , minced
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley , finely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
- Combine butter, garlic and salt in a heatproof bowl and melt in the microwave. Stir through parsley.
- Cut the bread on a diagonal into 2cm/1″ diamonds but do not cut all the way through the bread.
- Use your fingers or a knife to pry open each crack and drizzle in a teaspoon of butter and stuff in a pinch of cheese. This might sound like a bit of an effort, but I promise you it is worth it! You don’t need to be super neat, it’s nice to have some of the butter drizzled over the crust.
- Brush surface with remaining butter.
- Wrap with foil and bake for 20 minutes until the cheese has mostly melted, then unwrap and bake for 5 – 10 minutes more to make the bread nice and crusty.
- Serve immediately. (See note 1 for best make ahead methods)
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
Yesterday, today, tomorrow… #HardLifeOfDozer
Made 2 loaves. In the oven now – I hope the family likes it!
I hope they did!
Great delicious looking and I’m sure very great tasting too! Love looking at all the pictures as well.
So so SO tasty!!
I want to make this for Thanksgiving. O would need to make ahead and transport. How long will it stay warm? Have you ever used anything to keep it warm so the cheese won’t get hard? Suggestions? Thanks!
Hi Hannah, no I haven’t. It doesn’t stay warm for more than around 15 – 20 minutes – i.e. the cheese. But if you make this with a really crusty sourdough, bake it, keep it wrapped in foil then when you get there, just microwave it for 2 minutes or so until the cheese remelts. It will still be nice and crusty!
Just remember to remove it from the foil before microwaving!!!
I made it for Thanksgiving dinner, just prepared it up to heating step & it traveled well to our dinner location 3 hours away. Now I’m forwarding the link to our dinner host who loved it.
Woo hoo! I’m so glad you enjoyed this SAF, thank you for letting me know! N xx
This would be awesome on cold winter days with a big pot of homemade Irish Potato soup, a complete meal with a baked apple for dessert.
Now THAT is a feast!!
This may be a silly question, but your reader said to cream the butter….what does that mean instead of melting it?
Just means to mix it up well. Use a beater on low speed. It changes the consistency and incorporated the garlic and parsley as well.
You take a fork and go through butter and fluff it up. You can also use a whisk.
I love these ideas let see if it works out the same way, my friends and family will love it.
Hope you do try it!
I make this recipe & my family loves it!! I add dried basil and minced capers to the butter. Try it!
It’s so wonderful to hear you enjoyed it Naomi, thank you for letting me know!! N x
How much is 3.5 oz. of butter? How many tablespoons?
Hi Cindy! It’s 7 tbsp, I will add a note to the recipe
Every year for my teenaged daughter’s birthday, I host a dinner party for her friends, and ever since the year that I first served your cracktastic pull-apart bread, they ask for it every time. So, tomorrow night I will watch 6 teenagers absolutely destroy one lasagna and 2 loaves of crack bread. (I’ll be lucky to get a piece!) And the kids? They will think that I have magical powers. Thank you for this recipe–so good!
I’m so thrilled to hear that you enjoyed this Mere! THANK YOU for letting me know! N x
Hi Nagi
I Have a Question…. My Oven Just packed it in, how would i go about cooking it in a BBQ.. ???
Thanks for that I will give it a go when I get a chance from work… I am thinking start giving your recipes a go on BBQ’s since most people live on BBQ’s……
Oh dear, I haven’t tried it on the BBQ! However, this is what I would do: wrap it double with foil, heat one side of BBQ and place the bread on the other side, put the lid down and use the BBQ like an oven 🙂 Hope it works! Otherwise, microwave it (without foil) – won’t be crispy, but if you used sourdough as I did, it won’t be soggy. N x
Just tried this tonight. Couldn’t be easier and it was amazing.. people asked me to “not” make it again because they couldn’t stop eating it!
It’s madness, isn’t it?? A feeding frenzy!!! 🙂 N x
The garlic bread looks scrumptious I got
to try it
It’s insanely delicious!!
I am addicted to this stuff– it really is like crack. I’ve used olive oil + butter to make it slightly less unhealthy, and that’s worked out just great! My roommate thinks I’m a wizard now.
I know, I know! WHY IS IT SO GOOD??!!!
I’ve made three tine in two weeks nd been asked to make more
I hear you Bob. I am requested for this recipe regularly!
Hey girlfriend ive used ur recipe before, no complants from my gang, there asking when will i be making ur recipe soon, got a question for you. Im going to take this to a potluck, should i make it at home, and warn in their microwave or do everything thing at home and then serve it when i get there. It will be served cooled is that ok, or should i serve it warm from the m.w. thanks i be waiting for ur answer. thats warm in their m.w.
Hi Cecilia – this really has to be served warm to get that gooey cheese! If you use a good crusty sourdough, then you can make it at home then warm in the microwave and it will stay nice and crusty 🙂
Hi! i have question. if i don’t use unsalted butter and instead go for the salted one, will it be okay?
Sure! Just skip adding salt 🙂
Hi! Would it work better to use a turkey baste to squirt the butter in or to use a brush and brush the butter on the inside of the cracks?
Thanks.
Hi Adam, that sounds really clever! I just don’t know if the garlic will clog the hole / evenly distribute?? I tried a brush and found that it didn’t hold enough butter for each crack, you sort of scoop up the butter with the spoon. 🙂
Everyone loved it!
Yay!!! 🙂 N x
I’ve made it for a couple of friends and they loved it! But instead of the garlic butter I used garlic mayo. It turned out delicious!! Thanks for the great recipe! ?
I’m so glad you enjoyed this Liz! 🙂
I tried this recipe but used microwave to bake 🙂 and it did not come out as good as it came for you. But the taste was too good. Next time I will try to bake it.
Thanks for sharing,
Akhil Mishra –
Hope you do make this in the oven! Promise it tastes amaaaaaazing!!!!