WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS Garlic bread might seem like such a simple thing to make—why do you even need a recipe? The answer is, because more often than not, this Italian American classic ends up being a disappointment to eat. There’s either too much or not enough garlic flavor, or the garlic tastes acrid and harsh, or the bread is soggy or pale. For a perfectly toasted version with garlic flavor that was prominent, sweet, and roasty, but not harsh, we microwaved fresh garlic (grated to a paste with a rasp-style grater) and butter and combined it with garlic powder. We then combined this melted garlic butter with solid butter and just a bit of cayenne and salt
to make a spreadable paste that could be smeared evenly onto the bread. We baked the buttered bread cut side up on a baking sheet and then flipped it and compressed it with a second baking sheet. The panini-style setup pressed the buttered side onto the hot sheet so that it evenly crisped and browned while also compressing the bread for a better balance of crust to crumb. The amount of time needed to brown the bread after flipping it depends on the color of your baking sheet. If using a dark-colored sheet, the browning time will be on the shorter end of the range. In true Italian American style, a 12 by 5-inch loaf of supermarket Italian bread, with its
soft, thin crust and fine crumb, works best here. Do not use a crusty or rustic artisan-style loaf.
Serves: 8
Total time: 30 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon water
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 or 5 garlic cloves, grated to paste
- 1 (1-pound) loaf soft Italian bread, halved horizontally
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Combine garlic powder and water in medium bowl. Add 4 tablespoons butter, salt, and cayenne to bowl; set aside.
- Place remaining 4 tablespoons butter in small bowl and microwave, covered, until melted, about 30 seconds. Stir in garlic and continue to microwave, covered, until mixture is bubbling around edges, about 1 minute, stirring halfway through microwaving. Transfer melted butter mixture to bowl with garlic powder–butter mixture and whisk until homogeneous loose paste forms. (If mixture melts, set aside and let solidify before using.)
- Spread cut sides of bread evenly with butter mixture. Transfer bread, cut sides up, to rimmed baking sheet. Bake until butter mixture has melted and seeped into bread, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove sheet from oven. Flip bread cut sides down, place second rimmed baking sheet on top, and gently press. Return sheet to oven, leaving second sheet on top of bread, and continue to bake until cut sides are golden brown and crisp, 4 to 12 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. Transfer bread to cutting board. Using serrated knife, cut each half into 8 slices. Serve immediately.
