Cheesy Pull Apart Garlic Bread with Dipping Sauce
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Can we talk about how delicious pull apart garlic bread is for a moment?
It has all the things we love: melted butter, crushed garlic, freshly grated mozzarella cheese all wrapped up in a warm, soft, (yet perfectly crusty) sourdough bread round.
This recipe truly elevates sourdough bread and takes finger foods to the next level. It’s a gorgeous party appetizer or addition to the dinner table too!
Basically say goodbye to ordinary and boring garlic bread because this is the only way you’re going to want it now.
And to top it off (literally) this pull apart garlic bread goodness pairs perfectly with my moms famous bread dipping sauce.
It’s an olive oil and balsamic vinegar based dipping sauce that my family devours at just about every holiday and get together.
Why this recipe works
- Unbeatable flavor: perfectly cheesy, garlicky, warm, and insanely delicious!
- Ultimate appetizer: great for a low-fuss yet impressive party appetizer, or even a Friday night in, because carbs.
- A fun one: this cheesy bread is so fun to eat and share! You just can’t beat those stringy cheesy pulls!
- Perfect for fall and winter: even better than an appetizer this cheesy bread is great for dunking in soups and stews. Or enjoy it as a side with your favorite Italian meal. We love it with spaghetti and meatballs!
Ingredient Notes
(For the full recipe, scroll down to the recipe card below)
- Bread: you’ll need one sourdough Artisan bread round (16 oz.) loaf. I just use a store bought loaf but definitely use homemade if you have one!
- Cheese: I used freshly shredded mozzarella. Mozzarella is best for the stringy cheese pulls but you can also add in cheddar, Brie, Bleu cheese, etc. Just make sure it’s freshly shredded. Pre-shredded just does not melt the same!
- Garlic: fresh minced garlic cloves work best for this recipe!
- Butter: I prefer to use unsalted butter so I can control the amount of salt. However, if you only have salted you can just omit the additional salt (or keep it if you like these salty!).
- Seasonings: grab some Italian Seasoning, salt, pepper and red pepper chili flakes (optional if you like a bit of spice).
- For the dipping oil: extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, asiago cheese and parmesan cheese. You can find a full list of ingredients and recipe for the dipping oil here!
Step-by-step directions
(For the full recipe, scroll down to the recipe card below)
Cut bread
I would say the “hardest” part of this whole thing is cutting the bread. Slice bread carefully by cutting the bread in strips in one direction, then rotating the bread to cut in the other direction. Only cut about half way down the bread, not all the way to the bottom! Take it slow and let the knife work its magic!
Mix cheese & seasonings
Mix the mozzarella cheese with the garlic and seasonings. Melt the butter in a microwave safe bowl for ~30 seconds or until completely melted.
Stuff bread
Stuff the cheese mixture in between all of the cut bread, being gentle with the bread so it does not tear. Then pour melted butter on top.
Wrap & Bake
Place the bread on a baking sheet lined with foil. Loosely cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and broil for 2-3 minutes or until cheese is bubbling.
Mix oil & enjoy!
While the pull apart bread is in the oven, whisk together the ingredients for the dipping sauce. Serve the bread while it’s warm and ooey-gooey!
Tips to making pull apart bread
- Use freshly grated mozzarella cheese for the best, stringy, cheese pulls. However, you can use a combination of cheeses too – so fun!
- Carefully cut the bread with a bread knife just about half way. You can cut into large or smaller squares – chefs choice! I like big, hearty squares.
- Cook the bread for an addition 2-3 minutes on broil to get the bread nice and crusty on top and the cheese bubbling.
- Prep the loaf in advance and store in the fridge before you want to bake it. Don’t pour the melted butter on until you’re ready to bake!
- Use the leftovers for dunking in red sauce or in a cozy soup.
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Cheesy Pull Apart Garlic Bread
Ingredients
For the bread
- 1 (16 oz.) Artisan sourdough bread loaf
- 3 cups Mozzarella cheese, freshly grated
- 2 Tbsp. crushed garlic
- 1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 1 tsp. red pepper chili flakes (optional)
- 8 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted (1 stick)
For the dipping sauce
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp. garlic, crushed
- 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. red pepper chili flakes (optional)
- 1/3 cup Asiago cheese, shredded
- 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
Last step! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. In a medium sized bowl, mix the shredded mozzarella cheese with the garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and red pepper chili flakes. Set aside.3 cups Mozzarella cheese, freshly grated, 2 Tbsp. crushed garlic, 1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. pepper, 1 tsp. red pepper chili flakes (optional)
- Using a bread knife, carefully cut the bread in strips in one direction, rotate the bread and cut in the other direction. Only cut about half way down the bread, not all the way!1 (16 oz.) Artisan sourdough bread loaf
- Melt the butter in a microwave safe bowl for ~30 seconds or until completely melted. Stuff the cheese mixture in between all the crevices of the bread. Drizzle the melted butter all over the top.8 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted (1 stick)
- Place the bread on a baking sheet lined with foil. Loosely cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and broil for 2-3 minutes or until cheese is bubbling.
- While the bread is in the oven, whisk all of the ingredients for the dipping sauce together in a small bowl.1/2 cup olive oil, 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp. garlic, crushed, 1 tsp. Italian seasoning, 1 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. red pepper chili flakes (optional), 1/3 cup Asiago cheese, shredded, 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
- Serve with the bread. Pull-apart, dunk and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is automatically calculated. It should only be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Kroll’s Korner can’t make any guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
LOOKS GREAT ….. BUT AFTER PULLING OFF THE TOP BIT DO YOU NEED TO CUT THE “BASE” LEFT OVER TO MAKE IT USEFUL ? OR SIMPLY KEEP PULLING AWAY AT THAT WITH A TAD MORE DIFFICULTY ? I NOTICED YOU MENTIONED USING THE “LEFTOVERS” WITH RED SAUCE OR IN A SOUP.
I’D HATE TO THINK YOU ONLY GET THE TOP SECTION AS THE APPETIZER.
hi! good question! I served this just yesterday and people just kept pulling away at it. But you can really do whatever you want 🙂
I took this to a New Year’s Eve party, and it was a hit! I used half gruyere and half mozzarella. Thanks for the fantastic recipe! I bookmarked this one.
Loveeee gruyere so much! Thank you!! Happy New Year 🙂
I didn’t make the bread recipe, but I did make the dipping oil to go with some ciabatta I had. It was delicious! 10/10 will make again.
amazing!! so glad you liked it 🙂 thank you!
No video, I’m a visual learner and a video would have been great.
hey rick, hmmm. there are actually videos in the step by step process in the recipe card, and the full video in the recipe card too.
My family could not get enough of this cheesy pull apart bread and the dipping sauce was fantastic! Will absolutely make again.
Beautiful! Im glad it was enjoyed by the fam 🙂 thank you!!
Easy and delicious recipe! Definitely a crowd pleaser!
This was tasty. My only complaints would be baker error. I left it to broil and didn’t watch thanks to my kids fighting. So it got burnt. I also think I could have cut down more into the bread. But the cheese blend was yummy and the dipping sauce was too.
I totally get it about the kids – I burnt waffles today because my toddler was running everywhere haha. Glad you enjoyed, thank you!!
I loved this. My husband thought the dipping sauce was very balsamic forward, which I enjoy. Do you think white balsamic would be sweeter? But I made it with a homemade sourdough loaf and it was delicious. And the cheese mix is something I would use in more than this. No pepper flakes were used
Thank you so much! You could maybe use less balsamic, I haven’t tried it with white, but if you do please let me know how it goes! 🙂
I absolutely LOVE this recipe, and everyone I serve the bread to loves it too! I first made it for my annual superbowl party, and it was a big hit. For that one, I purchased an artisan loaf from the grocery store. Since then, I have made my own sourdough boule, and use that for the cheesy bread, and it is amazing! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you so much! Love that you’re making your own bread – even better! xo, Tawnie
This was fun and easy to make! Amazing recipe. My family devoured it! Will definitely make again.