I’ve made my own garlic bread in the past and it’s to die for, but when do I ever need a whole loaf at once? While I probably could eat a whole loaf, I know deep down that it’s probably not a good idea (look at me being a responsible adult!). This Homemade Freezer Garlic Bread fixes that problem. Prepare the slices of garlic bread ahead, freeze them (unbaked), and then they’re ready and waiting for you whenever you get the craving, just like the kind you buy in a box at the store.
What’s So Great About Freezer Garlic Bread?
EVERYTHING. J/k, almost. It’s super fast to prepare and then you have a whole stockpile of single serving slices that are ready to pop into the oven on a moments notice. Bake two slices or ten, it’s up to you! Plus, since you’re mixing up the garlic butter topping, you know exactly what’s in there (and what isn’t), which always makes me feel good.
How Long Can You Keep Garlic Bread in the Freezer?
I usually try to use my garlic bread within three months of freezing. But if we’re being honest, it never lasts that long because it’s too good! Frozen foods undergo a slow decline in quality and flavor while frozen, so you don’t want to keep them too long, even if technically they are still safe to eat.
Homemade Freezer Garlic Bread
Servings 12 to 16 slicesIngredients
- 8 Tbsp salted butter, room temperature ($1.04)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced ($0.32)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 Tbsp dried parsley ( $0.30)
- 1 loaf French bread ($1.00)
Instructions
- Add the butter, olive oil, minced garlic, garlic powder, salt, and parsley to a bowl. Mix the ingredients together until they form a fairly smooth mixture.
- Slice the French bread into 1-inch thick slices (12-16 slices, depending on the size of the loaf). Add 1/2 to 1 Tbsp of the garlic spread to each slice of bread and spread it from edge to edge. Arrange the slices on a baking sheet and then place them in the freezer for about 30 minutes to allow the butter to firm up. Once firm, transfer the garlic bread to a gallon-sized freezer bag for longer storage. Store in the freezer up to three months.
- To cook the frozen slices of garlic bread, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Once the oven is heated, take as many slices out of the freezer as you’d like, and place them on a baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown.* If you prefer a softer garlic bread without crispy edges, wrap the slices in foil before baking.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Video
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Freezer Garlic Bread – Step by Step Photos
In a bowl, combine 8 Tbsp room temperature salted butter, 2 Tbsp olive oil, 4 cloves garlic (minced) 1 Tbsp dried parsley, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, and 1/4 tsp salt.
Mix them all up until it forms a fairly smooth mixture (a few chunks of butter are a-okay).
Take a loaf of French bread and slice it into 1-inch pieces (12-16 pieces, depending on the length of your loaf).
Place your bread slices on a baking sheet. Divide the garlic spread between your slices (about 1/2 to 1 Tbsp per slice) and spread it from edge to edge of the bread. Freeze the bread flat on the baking sheet for about 30 minutes, or until the garlic spread is firm (if you forget at 30 minutes and come back to it hours later, that’s okay. Just don’t leave it for more than a day or it could start to dry out or absorb rogue flavors.
Transfer the frozen garlic bread to a gallon-sized freezer bag for long term storage. Always make sure to label and date your frozen goods!
To bake the frozen garlic bread, preheat the oven to 400ºF. Place your frozen slices on a baking sheet and once the oven is fully preheated, transfer the slices to the hot oven. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the edges of the garlic bread are golden brown. If you prefer a softer garlic bread rather than one with crispy edges, you can wrap the slices in foil before baking.
Wow you are the best seriously. I always like to have garlic bread in my freezer so I end up spending like 6 bucks on it at the store and regretting it after. This is a wonderful solution, thank you once again :)
What a great idea! Perfect for a busy week when you need something quick to make. Thank you :)
seriously why didn’t I think of this? So genius! Bet it would be good for using up those loaves that are a day past prime too.
CANT WAIT TO TRY THIS!!! Thanks Beth!
Just made some! the smell and the taste is great!
Wow! What a coincidence that I just tried my hand at making my own French bread for the first time today before I saw this (it is in the oven as I type this and smelling AMAZING). It’s snowing like crazy here right now, so I got a little over-zealous in my bread-making and have two more loaves ready to go in the oven after these two. This will be a great way to use some of it…and the hubby will love me even more for it! Thanks, Beth!
Um, I had no idea you could make your own French Bread, but then again, you’re dealing with a person who thought making garlic bread was whipping out a piece of white bread, putting some melted butter on and then sprinkling a bit of garlic from a can. Bad idea. It was disgusting! I love the idea of making an actual good loaf of bread and having a real freezer pleaser for later. Thanks!
I too like to have garlic bread in the freezer. I slice the whole loaf lengthwise , butter and season both halves then stick back together and slice about 10 or so times. I wrap up in foil and put back into the plastic bread bag . We only have 5 at home now but there are often extras over for dinner so I do the whole loaf.
I think I will do the mix as you do with the oil and parsley….I need to get more bread again. As someone suggested get jimmy john bread. I do that. Other wise store loaves can be over 2.00 a piece. I put the frozen loaf rigght into oven in foil. It makes a soft loaf rather than crispy.
You know what else you could do with these? Put a slice of cheeeeeeeeeeese in between them when you pull them out of the freezer, and make garlic grilled cheese! And here’s my secret to excellent grilled cheese…press some fresh parmesan into the garlic-buttered side of the bread. This technique has made me semi-famous amongst my friends. :)
I make garlic bread slices all the time but never thought to do a whole loaf at once and freeze it! Now I won’t have bread going bad between dinners! :)
If you don’t mind the calories, I find adding some mayo to the mix and giving the tops a dash of paprika really gives it something special…my local grocery store makes loaves in-house that way and I had to try to recreate it!
Cathryn does it taste like mayonnaise ?
I also add a dollop of mayonnaise (rather than oil) and it makes for a creamy easy-to-spread mixture. I’ve never noticed any taste other than what I was expecting – that of delicious homemade garlic bread.
I’m drooling.. and love this idea of having garlic bread at the ready. Thanks for another great tip!
Not sure if you have a Jimmy John’s restaurant nearby, but they always sell loaves of day – old bread for 50 cents. That could make this an even cheaper recipe :)
Wow! Thanks for the tip!
How much more salt should I add when using unsalted butter? I don’t use salted butter normally so I don’t want to buy the whole package just for that purpose. It’s hard to come by where I live anyway.
I think the standard is 1/4 tsp of salt per stick (8 tbsp).
I’d take Megan’s advice and start with 1/4 tsp (in addition to the 1/4 tsp called for in the recipe). You can give the garlic butter a taste and add more if needed before spreading it on the bread. :)
whoops, you skipped the step where you stuff a whole piece in your mouth, just to get the flavor correct, while you’re piling the others on the cookie sheet for the freezer. because yes, this would be heavenly even without baking–who doesn’t like bread and butter? :)
Ha! Ha! I was thinking the same thing. In fact the skinny “heels” of the bread are perfect for this task….it’s exactly what I did!
How long can the garlic bread stay in the freezer? Thanks, Beth!! :-)
There’s not a definitive cut off, but I find that most food starts to degrade in quality after about three months. :)
I was JUST thinking about this the other day! So crazy to pay $1.99 for 8 slices of yuck. How I make them, though, is in a skillet like grilled cheese! WAY easier than heating up the entire over for one or two slices :)
That should say oven…. :)
Great tip! Thanks!
A Youtuber mentioned last week about making garlic bread, and I was thinking how to make some. Amazing.
Thank you! Your blog is a huge inspiration right now, took me out of a cooking slump.
We did this style from time to time when doing something like a Spaghetti dinner or Lasagna except it was typically a full loaf. Instead of freezing the individual slices with butter side up we’d stick them together (so you got garlic/butter on both sides of the bread) and then put the entire stuck together loaf (wrapped in tin foil in the oven to heat up and melt the butter. We also did a horizontal slice through the bread and at the end did vertical slices. for indivudal servings depending on how much you wanted.
Also consider tossing some crushed red pepper flakes to raise the “spicy heat” while not overloading it.
Great tips! I love it!