We are all about pizza in this house. Sometimes you just need to speed things up a bit, and that’s when you turn to this recipe. When cheese and bread unite, it’s an awesome, mouth-watering combination. I feel like a artist with a canvas when I assemble pizza creations. What’s remarkable about this little recipe is you secretly spice up a store bought loaf of French bread with a delicious buttery, garlic base. You also give it a homemade flare by adding freshly ground mozzarella. My husband came into the kitchen as I was grating the mozzarella. He really thought I went to a lot of work making dinner. But little to his knowledge, most of the work was done, when I threw the French bread into my grocery cart. I went with classic turkey pepperoni as the topping. But feel free to add your favorite toppings, perhaps pineapple and Canadian bacon; mushrooms with green peppers or make it a Margherita pizza with fresh basil. The possibilities are endless and the taste absolutely delicious.
Easy French Bread Pizza
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
- pinch red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley or basil leaves, or a mix
- Kosher salt
- 1 large loaf French or Italian bread (see note above), about 18 inches long and 4 inches wide, split half lengthwise and crosswise
- 1 (14.5 ounce) jar pizza sauce
- Turkey pepperoni (approximately 20 slices)
- 8 ounces freshly grated mozzarella cheese
- 2 ounces freshly grated Asiago cheese
Directions
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Heat butter and olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat until butter is melted. Add garlic, pepper flakes, and oregano and cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is softened but not browned, about 2 minutes. Stir in half of parsley/basil and a pinch of salt. Remove from heat.
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Place bread cut-side-up on a clean work surface. Press down evenly on bread until somewhat compressed. Place bread on top of a baking sheet. Using a pastry brush, brush half of the garlic/butter/oil mixture evenly over bread.
- Place the bread under the broiler for 1 to 2 minutes. Watch carefully so as not to burn. Remove and set aside.
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Add pizza sauce to remaining garlic/butter/oil mixture in pan, stir to combine, increase heat to medium, bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, about 7 minutes. Season to taste with salt.
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While sauce cooks, spread 1/4 of mozzarella evenly over surface of bread and transfer to oven. Adjust oven rack to upper position and preheat oven to 375°F.Cook until cheese is barely melted, about 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside until sauce is cooked.
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Spread sauce evenly over bread, then spread remaining mozzarella on top of sauce, and add the pepperoni slices. Transfer to oven and bake until cheese is melted and just starting to brown, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle with Asiago and remaining parsley/basil. Allow to cool slightly and serve.