Cheesy Pull Apart Garlic Bread with Dipping Sauce
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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.
This pull apart garlic bread deliciousness is:
- Perfectly cheesy
- Garlicky
- Great for a low-fuss yet impressive party appetizer, or even a Friday night in, because carbs.
- Warm, soft and comforting.
- Fun to eat!
- Fun to share!
- Insanely delicious. Like, really really.
- Great for dunking in soups and stews.
- Or as a side with your favorite Italian meal, we love it with spaghetti and meatballs!
Here are the essentials:
(For the full recipe, scroll down to the recipe card below)
- Sourdough Artisan bread round (16 oz.) I just use a store bought loaf!
- Mozzarella, freshly grated
- Garlic
- Butter
- Italian Seasoning
- Salt & Pepper
- Red Pepper Chili Flakes (optional)
- Olive Oil
- Balsamic Vinegar
- Asiago Cheese
- Parmesan Cheese
How to make pull apart garlic bread
I would say the “hardest” part of this whole thing is cutting the bread.
(For the full recipe, scroll down to the recipe card below)
- Cut the bread carefully and do not cut all the way through to the bottom, only cut about half way. Take it slow and let the knife work its magic!
- Mix the mozzarella cheese with the garlic and seasonings. Set aside to cut the bread.
- Stuff the cheese mixture in between all of the cut bread, being gentle with the bread so it does not tear.
- Pour the melted butter on top, loosely wrap with foil and bake.
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.
Let’s get that oven pre heated and ready to make some addicting and amazing pull apart garlic bread!
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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.
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.
This was so good. ALLLLLL the cheese!!
Seriously ADDICTIVE! It went so fast!