This easy garlic bread with sliced bread recipe makes use of regular bread for a flavor-packed toast, all in under 20 minutes, with just 5 common ingredients.
We’ve taken the classic garlic bread and given it a budget-friendly, health-conscious twist by using olive oil and whole wheat bread. So, grab your regular sliced bread and let’s get cooking!
In this post you’ll learn:
- Why you will love this recipe
- Ingredients
- Instructions
- Tips for a Fail-proof Recipe
- Garnish suggestions
- Storage and meal prep instructions
- FAQ
- Recipes to serve this garlic bread with!
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- This quick and easy garlic bread with sliced bread 🍞 recipe is perfect for those looking to enjoy homemade garlic bread in a flash, using your regular bread.
- Ideal for small portions: Perfect for solo dining or small gatherings, where using an entire bread loaf might be too much.
- Budget-friendly: Make a delectable garlic toast without the need for special artisanal loaves. 💰
- With pantry essential ingredients, it’s perfect for those ‘clean-out-my-fridge’ days! ❄️
- Healthier choice: Using olive oil to sub the butter, and using wholegrain sliced bread 🌾 instead of normal white bread, this recipe is a much healthier alternative.
- Plant-powered food, with flavor! This vegan recipe 🌱 does not compromise on any flavors of garlic bread!
- It’s essentially the same recipe as my Healthy Olive Oil Garlic Bread recipe, but we’re just substituting the Italian/French bread loaf with sliced/regular bread here!
Ingredients
- Garlic: Adds that robust, aromatic flavor that we love!
- Parsley Leaves: Fresh and vibrant, these leaves provide a burst of color and that herby goodness.
- Olive Oil: Extra-virgin olive oil to sub the butter in classic garlic bread, which also makes this recipe much healthier than other recipes! Say hi to guilt-free eating! 😉
- Salt: A pinch of salt enhances the overall taste.
- Sliced Bread: Your regular sliced bread, making this accessible and convenient. Opt for whole wheat bread for a healthier choice!
Do I have to use Wholemeal Bread or Can I Use White Bread?
In principle, this garlic bread toast works with both wholewheat / wholegrain bread, and with white bread. The reason why I opt for wholemeal bread is because whole grains can help you maintain a healthy weight and cholesterol levels, improve your gut health, and even lower risk for certain types of cancer, as explained in this Cleveland Clinic article.
For tips on how to choose which bread should you buy for the most nutritious options, check out this other guide by Cleveland Clinic.
How to Make Garlic Toast with Regular Sliced Bread
Peel and finely mince the garlic, using a microplane or hand grater if preferred.
The finer you mince the garlic, the better the flavors will meld.
Snap off the fresh parsley leaves, setting aside the stems for other recipes, and finely chop the leaves.
In a small bowl, combine all ingredients (except the bread) and mix them thoroughly.
Using a spoon or pastry brush, evenly spread the olive oil mixture onto one side of the bread. Then put the bread on a lined baking sheet.
Bake the bread at 425°F (218°C) on the top rack for 3 minutes, or 4 minutes for a crispier texture.
For extra crunchiness (optional but recommended), flip the bread and bake for an additional 3 minutes. If you prefer softer garlic bread, you can skip this flipping step.
That’s all so go enjoy your delicious sliced bread garlic bread now!
Top Tips
- Mincing the garlic & parsley: The finer you mince them, the better the flavor will combine together. So spend that additional minute to minced them very finely!
- Crispiness: To achieve the perfect level of crispiness, keep an eye on the bread while baking. You can always add or subtract a minute or two to match your preference.
- And remember, undercooking is preferable to burning, because you can always add an extra baking minute to an undercooked food, but burnt food is irreversible.
- Serve Fresh: Garlic toast is at its best when served fresh and warm. Reheat briefly in the oven if needed. Or consider freezing the prepared bread and just baking it before serving to maintain freshness (see freezing section below).
- You can toast your bread in any way you like! Using the oven, toaster, air fryer, or simply a good old frying pan. No fancy equipment is required!
Garnish Suggestions
I’m a huge fan of garnish, and if you’re not, I highly encourage you to start experimenting!
Here are a few tasty garnish options:
- Black pepper
- Chilli flakes / crushed red pepper flakes
- More herbs such as parsley, coriander, basil, chives, thyme, etc!
- Vegan Parmesan cheese
- Flaked sea salt
- Lemon zest
- Toasted nuts or seeds
And this isn’t a garnish, but if you want to jazz this recipe up, try swapping the garlic with some black garlic! You can read more about this fermented garlic with a slight caramel note in my List of 33 Black Vegetables post!
Storage and Meal Prep Instructions
Storage:
Serve this regular bread garlic bread fresh, preferably within 15 minutes.
For longer storage, freeze the brushed loaf (see the freezing section below). Avoid fridge storage, as it changes the texture of the bread.
Meal prep:
Bread is one of those rare food that does not store well in the fridge. The good news though is that it freezes great! So brush your bread slices with olive oil and freeze them.
Then reheat a few slices at a time, just before serving.
Freezing:
This sliced garlic bread recipe is ideal for freezing. Store the bread after brushing it with the olive oil mixture for up to 3 months.
No need to thaw before serving, because thawing them in the fridge might change the texture of the bread. Simply bake it for an additional 1-2 minutes at 425°F (218°C) for perfectly reheated garlic bread.
FAQ
No, I do not recommend making that substitution as fresh garlic packs much more flavor than powdered garlic.
One exception is if you don’t like garlic. In that case, you can sub the 5 cloves of garlic in this recipe with 2 teaspoons of garlic powder.
I have not tested this variation but I think it will work, although the flavor might be milder. I have to say that this recipe already tastes great even without parsley when I tested it.
If this is one of your ‘clean-my-fridge’ days, feel free to try this and let me know in the comments how it went!
If you don’t have a (toaster) oven, you can just toast it in a large non-stick frying pan. Toast on medium to high heat for about 3 minutes on each side.
Let it toast on one side without flipping (just flipping it once or twice) so your homemade garlic bread with sliced bread has time to get crispy!
Easy! Just add some grated Parmesan cheese (vegan or not, depending on your preference) to this sliced bread garlic bread to get that melty, cheesy garlic bread. You can also use some (vegan) shredded mozzarella for this.
Absolutely! In fact, you can use any bread for garlic bread. Be it sliced white bread, wholemeal bread, French or Italian bread loaves, or even bagels!
Of course the texture depends on the bread you use as a base. But this garlic toast recipe exists to help you make garlic bread with the regular sliced bread we often have at home! Just one of those stuff we can do to make life feel a bit more special! 😄
Recipes to Serve this Garlic Bread with
If you’re a fan of garlic bread + pasta combo, check out my Creamy Tandoori Sauce Pasta recipe. Or check out my dump-and-bake Grilled Tandoori Vegetables Platter that’s packed with so much flavor!
Or serve this garlic bread with regular bread with this deluxe-but-easy Caramelized Onions and Mushrooms recipe.
And if you’re a fan of homemade dips, these 4 dips recipes could be made in under 5 minutes each! So check out my Oil-free Mayonnaise (with Tofu or Cashews), Kimchi Aioil, Gochujang Aioli, or Tandoori Mayonnaise recipe!
Sliced Bread Garlic Bread (with Regular Bread, Homemade Garlic Toast)
Ingredients
- 5 cloves garlic finely minced
- 2 Tablespoon parsley leaves finely chopped
- 4 Tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 6 slices sliced bread (opt for whole grain/whole wheat for a healthier choice)
Instructions
- Peel and finely mince the garlic. You can also use a microplane or a hand grater.Remember that the more fine you mince the garlic, the better the flavor will blend together.
- Snap off the parsley leaves and remove the stems. You can use the stems in soups or in casserole dishes, but we only want the leaves for this recipe. Once this is done, finely chop your parsley leaves.
- Add all the ingredients (except the bread) to a small bowl and mix.
- Using either a spoon or a pastry brush, spread the olive oil mixture evenly on one side of the bread.
- Bake the bread in the oven at 425 °F (218 °C) for 3 minutes, or 4 minutes if you want a crustier bread. The bread should be golden brown.
- (Optional but recommended if you want crusty bread): Flip and then bake further for 3 more minutes.
Notes
- Garlic and Parsley Prep: The finer you mince the garlic and parsley, the better they’ll blend for richer flavor. Take that extra minute to finely mince them!
- Crispiness Control: Keep a close watch while baking for the perfect level of crispiness. You can easily adjust by adding or subtracting a minute or two to match your preference.
- Always remember that it’s better to undercook than to burn, as you can add extra baking time to undercooked food, but burnt food is irreversible.
- Serve Fresh: Garlic bread is best when served fresh. If needed, briefly reheat in the oven. Alternatively, freeze the prepared bread and bake it before serving to maintain its freshness (see freezing section in the post above).
- Toast Your Way: You can toast your bread using the oven, toaster, air fryer, or a trusty frying pan.
- Storage, Meal Prep, and Freezing Notes: See the post above for a comprehensive guide on this!
