Garlic Bread

You know that incredibly easy bread I told you about yesterday?  One of the many times I made it I turned it into the most delicious garlic bread.  Store bought garlic bread is usually too greasy for me and the flavor falls a bit flat so when I came across this recipe in Cooks Country I jumped to try it.  I've made it before (their way) and have since tweaked it to make it my own.

The first time I made this I froze a portion of it to eat at a later meal.  Hey, Babe and I don't need a whole loaf of garlic bread to ourselves and I was able to use some later straight from the freezer without any prep work.  Another option would be to make extra of the butter mixture and place it in either the fridge or freezer to use on fresh bread later on.  It would take up less room in your freezer but you cut out a bit of time since you only need to slather some on the bread and toast it under the broiler.  Normally this is something I would serve with pasta dishes but it occurs to me that this would be the perfect accompaniment for Minestrone Soup. 

Since the bread does not take long in the oven, toasting the garlic cloves while they are still in their skins helps prevent the garlic from being to sharp and raw.  I use my little blender attachment food processor to mix this together, but if your butter is softened you should be able to mix it up with a fork.

Garlic Bread
Ingredients
9 - 10 cloves garlic, skins left on
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese (I admit that I have so far only used the pre-grated powdered stuff but this is still good.  I can't even imagine how incredible it would be with the fresh grated variety)
1 loaf bread (about 1 pound), halved lengthwise

instructions
1. Preheat oven to 500°F with oven rack in middle position.  Meanwhile, in a small pan placed over medium heat, toast garlic cloves until fragrant, about 8 minutes being sure to shake pan occasionally so they do not burn. Carefully remove skins and place in food processor along with the salt, onion and parsley.  Pulse a few times.  Add the butter and Parmesan and pulse until thoroughly combined.

2. Spread each of the cut sides of the bread evenly with garlic butter mixture. Place the loaves, buttered side up, onto a baking sheet and place in the oven 8 to 10 minutes. Rotate the pan if necessary to ensure that the loaves are browning evenly.  Cut each half into 2-inch slices and serve immediately.