Garlic toast is easy to make and is the perfect side for bread lovers. Since you can use it with any pasta dish, it's one recipe you need to master.
If you love Italian food, you'll want to check out our caprese brushetta recipe and our pasta e fagioli soup.
Ingredients
Curious about what 6 ingredients you need to make easy garlic toast? Let's talk about them.
- Bread: You can use Italian or French bread, pre-sliced or slice your own, day old or fresh.
- Butter: Use salted butter for the best flavor. If you are vegan or dairy free, use a good quality margarine.
- Cheese: Use freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Buy vegan cheese if needed.
- Dried spices: For ease, we used garlic powder, dill weed, and Italian seasoning.
How to Make
Gather all the ingredients for the garlic toast. Slice the bread, grate the cheese, measure out the spices, and soften the butter.
- To make the herb butter, add the spices to the butter.
- Add the freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
3. Mix everything together with a spatula or a large spoon until combined.
4. Generously butter both sides of the bread, so you can taste the butter with every bite.
5. Cook the garlic toast under the broiler to achieve a golden brown color and a nice crunch. Remove the tray from the oven, flip over the toast, and brown the other side.
6. For best results, serve immediately. Keep warm by wrapping the toast in a fabric napkin or a clean kitchen towel, then set it inside a large bowl.
Recipe FAQs
The main differences are in how it's cut, the butter mixture, and how it's cooked.
Garlic bread can be sliced accordion style or sliced lengthwise into 2 long pieces brushed with fresh garlic butter and baked in the oven. Garlic toast is sliced, spread with garlic butter, then toasted under the broiler.
Slice the French or Italian bread in ½ inch slices, spread both sides with softened butter that has garlic and other spices mixed in, place on a baking tray, and bake under the broiler for 2 to 3 minutes. Flip over and broil the other side.
There are three ways you can soften butter. The first is to let it sit at room temperature. This is the best way, but also requires the most time.
If you are in a hurry, you can also cut the hard butter into uniform cubes and place in a bowl of warm (not hot) water. Let it sit for a few minutes, then drain the water and then stir the butter.
The third way is to cut the butter into smaller pieces, place in a bowl, and microwave for 5 seconds at a time. Stir the butter between each interval. This method requires you to watch the butter closely. If the butter melts, you'll have to brush on the butter with a pastry brush.
It depends on the type of bread you use, how thick your slice is, and how much butter is on each slice. By making minor adjustments, you can easily make eating garlic toast more healthy.
Serve
Our easy garlic toast tastes best with pasta dishes, chili, Caesar salad, or our lasagna soup.
Store
- Make Ahead: Prep the bread, but don't bake. Flash freeze for 20 minutes on a baking tray, then place in freezer zip top bags or another freezer friendly container.
- Keeping it Warm: If you need to keep the garlic toast warm and your oven is available, wrap it in foil and place it in the oven on the lowest setting. If you don't have access to an oven, and you'll be eating it soon, wrap it in a large fabric napkin or a clean kitchen towel and place in a large bowl.
- Leftovers: Any leftovers should be stored in the freezer, and not in the fridge. Storing bread in the fridge makes it go stale.
- Freezer: Any leftovers can be stored in the freezer for up to one month.
- Reheat Choice #1: When you ready to use the made ahead, but not baked garlic bread, place on baking tray and place under the broiler for 5 minutes, flip the toast over, and bake the other side. You'll want the toast to be golden brown. Watch it carefully, so it doesn't burn.
- Reheat Choice #2: When ready to use, reheat on a baking tray at 375 F for a few minutes until warm. You can also cover the leftovers slices with foil and bake at 300 F until warm.
- Repurpose: If you want to re-purpose your leftovers, make the toast into a grilled cheese sandwich by adding a few slices of cheese and melt under the broiler on a baking tray.
Expert Tips
- Use freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Avoid using the pre-grated stuff, as it doesn't melt very well.
- Butter and toast both sides of the bread.
- Garlic toast tastes best when eaten soon after it comes out of the oven.
- Keep the garlic toast warm by wrapping it in a fabric napkin or clean kitchen towel.
- Have leftovers? Freeze in a zip-top bag, then reheat under the broiler for a minute.
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Recipe
Easy Garlic Toast
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups salted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon dill weed
- 1 ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ cup grated Parmesan
- 30 slices Italian bread
Equipment
Instructions
- Move the oven rack 7 inches from the broiler then preheat the broiler on high.
- Using a bread knife, slice the Italian loaf into 30 slices, reserving the ends for another use.
- To make the herb butter, put the softened butter, spices, and Parmesan cheese in a bowl then stir until combined.
- Spread the herb butter on both sides of each slice of bread. Remember to not spread the herb butter on too thinly; you'll need a certain amount to maximize flavor. Place the slices close together on the cookie sheet.
- Bake in the oven under the broiler for 3 to 5 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Watch closely after the first two minutes so the slices don't burn. Turn the garlic toast over with a large metal spatula. Place the tray back in the oven to bake the other side of the garlic toast.
- Serve warm. To help keep the garlic toast warm, place it in a large bowl lined with a fabric napkin or a clean tea towel. Close up the napkin to retain the heat. Garlic toast tastes best if eaten the same day. If you have leftovers, freeze and reheat under the broiler for a minute to crisp it.
Notes
- Use freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Avoid using the pre-grated stuff, as it doesn't melt very well.
- Butter and toast both sides of the bread.
- Garlic toast tastes best when eaten soon after it comes out of the oven.
- Keep the garlic toast warm by wrapping it in a fabric napkin or clean kitchen towel.
- Have leftovers? Freeze in a zip-top bag, then reheat under the broiler for a minute.
Nutrition
Serving sizes and nutritional information are only an estimate and may vary from your results.
Our easy garlic toast recipe was originally published on February 14, 2018 and was updated on Feb. 7, 2020 with new photos and content. It was updated again with resized photos and content on Feb. 24, 2023.
Alex
The toast is crispy and buttery, and perfectly toasted. The herbs and cheese complement each other perfectly. I could eat quite a few bites of this garlic toast. 5 stars for sure!!
Emma
Thanks, Alex! Garlic toast is delicious!!
Beth
This is a well-toasted, perfect garlic bread. The toast stays soft in the center, and buttery with a good strong color and garlic taste. Definitely my favorite garlic toast!
Emma
Homemade garlic toast is hard to beat! 😋