Cheesy Garlic Pull-Apart Bread

Yeah I said it. Cheesy. Garlic. Bread. With lots of butter. It's so easy and SO good. I'm not ashamed to admit this was pretty much my main course with a side of pasta for dinner.

Ingredients:

1 loaf Italian bread
1 stick butter
3 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp parsley flakes
1 tsp chives
Salt, black pepper and crushed red pepper to taste
About 2 cups Shredded mozzarella or pepper jack cheese

Using a good serrated knife, cut rows in the bread, an inch apart, then turn the bread and repeat to create little squares. But DO NOT CUT THE BREAD ALL THE WAY THROUGH! Make sure to only cut down to about a half inch from the bottom, so it all stays together.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter and add the garlic cloves. Stir for about 30 seconds then remove from heat and let cool slightly. Add the parsley, chives, salt and peppers. Place the bread onto a baking sheet. Drizzle the butter mixture in between the cuts on the bread, then pack some cheese into the cuts. Be generous here! Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is melty and bread is crusty. Let cool slightly before serving.

Broccoli Alfredo Stuffed Shells

This recipe uses my alfredo sauce recipe which is also on this blog but I'll repost it below. You can add or substitute other veggies like mushrooms, spinach, kale etc, or shredded chicken.

Ingredients:

1 box large shell pasta, boiled al dente
About 1 cup shredded mozzarella
About 1 cup shredded parmigiano reggiano-peccorino Romano mix

For sauce:
1 stick butter
4 cloves minced garlic
1 quart heavy cream
1/2 cup grated parm
1 tbsp dried basil

For filling:
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup shredded parm (I used the same parmigiano reggiano and peccorino Romano mix)
2 heaping tbsp ricotta
1 head broccoli, chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
Salt, black pepper and crushed red pepper to taste

To make the sauce, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds, don't let it brown. Add the cream and bring to a simmer, stirring frequently. When it starts to simmer, slowly add the parm and stir continuously to blend. Add the basil. Remove from heat and let cool.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the filling and then add 4-5 tbsp of the cooled alfredo sauce to bring it all together.

Spread a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of a baking dish. Fill each cooled shell with a heaping tbsp of filling and place in dish. Spoon sauce over the filled shells, sprinkle generous amounts of shredded mozzarella and the parm-romano cheese. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.