I first had this idea after having the garlic cheese pull apart bread. We ate the bread and thought this would be good pizza style. So I added in some homemade pizza sauce pepperoni and basil and now you have a delicious pull apart pizza bread. It is great served as a snack, appetizer or for a meal. Anyway you have it, you will love it!
Ingredients:
- 1 French or Sourdough loaf of bread, unsliced
- 2/3 cup butter, melted
- 4 cloves garlic, crushed (or 1 tablespoon minced garlic)
- 1/3 cup pizza sauce (homemade version here)
- 3-1/2 ounces mini pepperoni slices
- Fresh basil leaves , finely shredded
- 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 tablespoon dried Italian herbs or Italian seasoning
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F degrees.
In a small bowl, combine the melted butter and crushed garlic. Mix well to combine. Set aside.
Place the loaf of bread on a chopping board. Using a sharp bread knife, cut the bread diagonally in rows across the top, down to 1-inches (2 cm) above the base in depth. (Be careful not to cut through to the base of the loaf.) Holding the bread firmly and gently over the top, cut through in rows in the other direction to create diamond shaped wedges. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with tin foil, or parchment paper. Drizzle half of the garlic butter in between each wedge, followed by the pizza sauce. Then add the pepperoni slices, basil, and cheese.
Drizzle the remaining garlic butter over the top of bread and top with the Italian herbs (or seasoning). Cover with foil and bake for 15 – 20 minutes, or until cheese has started to melted. Uncover and bake for a further 10 minutes, or until bread is crunchy and the cheese has melted all the way through.
Remove and allow to cool slightly before serving.
