Description
This oven-baked French Bread Pizza recipe is a delicious and easy way to enjoy a homemade pizza with a crispy, crunchy crust. The recipe features a secret buttery garlic herb spread that adds incredible flavor, topped with classic pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, and your favorite toppings like pepperoni. Perfect for a quick dinner or snack, these pizzas bake up golden and cheesy in under 30 minutes.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
French Bread & Toppings
- 1 loaf French Bread, about 1 lb, 20-21 inches long
- 1 1/2 cups pizza sauce
- 2 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 25 pepperoni slices
Garlic Herb Butter Spread
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 425° F to ensure it’s hot enough to crisp the bread perfectly.
- Prepare the Bread: Cut the loaf of French bread in half lengthwise, then cut each half into slices. Arrange the bread slices on a large, light-colored baking sheet with the cut sides up.
- Make Garlic Herb Butter: In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the olive oil, butter, minced garlic, dried oregano, and salt. Heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring continuously until melted and fragrant. Reduce heat if it gets too hot. Remove from heat.
- Apply Butter Mixture: Using a pastry brush, generously brush the garlic herb butter mixture onto the top of each bread slice, making sure to cover the edges well. Then sprinkle the grated Parmesan cheese evenly over each slice.
- Initial Bake: Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 6-7 minutes to toast the bread slightly and melt the Parmesan.
- Add Pizza Toppings: Remove the bread from the oven carefully. Spoon pizza sauce evenly over each slice, then top with shredded mozzarella cheese and pepperoni slices (or toppings of choice).
- Final Bake: Return the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 10-13 minutes until the cheese is melted, bubbly, and the edges of the bread are browned and crispy.
- Optional Broil: For a more browned top, broil at 450° F for about 1 minute—watch closely to avoid burning.
- Serve: Slice and serve the French Bread Pizza warm for the best flavor and texture.
Notes
- Choose a large, light, and airy loaf of French bread rather than a crusty one for the best texture.
- Use low moisture, whole milk shredded mozzarella cheese for optimal melting; shredding from a block is preferred over pre-shredded cheese.
- Keep sliced pepperoni in the freezer for freshness and convenience; add directly from frozen.
- Rao's Pizza Sauce is recommended for quality, but Ragu is a tasty, budget-friendly alternative.
- Leftovers can be refrigerated up to 2 days; reheat on a baking sheet at 350° F for 5-8 minutes until cheese is melty again.
- Try variations like Cast Iron Skillet Pizza, Buffalo Chicken Pizza, Hawaiian Pizza, or Pizza Dip for variety.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 pizza slice
- Calories: 420 kcal
- Sugar: 5 g
- Sodium: 700 mg
- Fat: 22 g
- Saturated Fat: 10 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 40 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 18 g
- Cholesterol: 50 mg
