How to Make Vegan Garlic Bread: Easy and Dairy-Free Recipes

Vegans cannot enjoy garlic bread on most outings since it nearly always contains dairy butter. However, you can serve garlic bread at home when you learn how to make vegan garlic bread. It perfectly accompanies BBQ, soup, stews, and pasta, making it a firm favorite in many households.

Making vegan garlic bread is deliciously garlicky, and perhaps you haven’t tried making it because you think it seems like a complicated treat. Here’s where you’re in for a surprise – you need only five ingredients, including the bread, to make crusty garlic bread dripping with vegan butter goodness. Here’s how to make vegan garlic bread to serve with meals in a few minutes. Heat it in the oven, and you are ready to serve!

Easy Vegan Garlic Bread Recipe

The idea for garlic bread seems to come from 15^th-century Rome and their love for garlic and bruschetta. Since then, it has become popular all over, thanks to its drippy, garlicky, buttery, and herby deliciousness.

Here’s an easy recipe to help you learn how to make vegan garlic bread for a surprise accompaniment to any meal:

Easy Vegan Garlic Bread

Ingredients

• 1 Vegan bread like a French baguette or ciabatta
• ½ cup vegan butter softened at room temperature
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 T. fresh parsley, finely chopped
• ½ t. salt
• ¼ t. black pepper

Instructions

1. Prepare to bake the vegan garlic bread to ensure it comes out a few minutes before serving by preheating the oven to 375°F.
2. Mix the softened vegan butter with the garlic, parsley, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Stir well to combine all the ingredients.
3. Cut the bread into slices without cutting all the way through.
4. With a knife, carefully spread the garlic butter mixture evenly onto each side of the bread, covering the entire surface for maximum flavor.
5. Wrap the prepared loaf in aluminum foil and place it on a baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes.
6. Carefully unwrap the bread and place it back in the oven for another 5-7 minutes for a golden and crispy finish.
7. Remove from the oven and serve warm.

Tips

• For a cheesy twist, sprinkle some vegan parmesan or nutritional yeast over the garlic butter bread or between its slices before baking.
• If you like a more intense garlic flavor, increase the number of garlic cloves to 5 or 6 or add some garlic powder to the butter.

Simple Ingredients for Vegan Garlic Bread

Making vegan garlic bread is easy because it consists of simple ingredients everyone has at home. Even if you don’t have a baguette, use slices of whatever bread you have at home to turn it into savory, buttery slices of golden perfection that uplift any meal.
How to make vegan garlic bread? Let’s start with the simple ingredients needed:

Bread

You can use a baguette, ciabatta, or a loaf of sourdough bread. However, you can still make garlic bread without a full loaf. Use any bread slices, including sandwich bread, and revive them by baking them on a baking sheet with vegan garlic butter. See this idea for how to make vegan garlic bread slices from Minimalist Baker. If using a long baguette, cut it in half before slicing it to make it easier to wrap for the oven. If you are afraid you might slice the bread through, use the trick with a chopstick placed net to the length of the bread.

Vegan Butter

You can use salted or unsalted vegan butter to make vegan garlic butter. Make the vegan butter yourself, or buy a good quality one from your grocery store. Some of the best to try include Miyoko’s Creamery, Earth Balance, or Country Crock Plant Butter.

Garlic

You cannot make vegan garlic bread without garlic. However, garlic powder cannot match fresh garlic’s authentic flavor. Therefore, use fresh, mashed garlic for garlic bread. If you don’t have any, use garlic paste enhanced with a little garlic powder.

Herbs and Spices

Add a classic flavor to your vegan garlic bread by adding some chopped flat-leaf parsley. You can omit the parsley if you don’t like it or don’t have any, but you can also replace it with dried parsley, dried basil, Italian seasoning, or dried oregano. If desired, you can also add some spiciness with a pinch of red chili flakes. Don’t forget to add sea salt and freshly ground pepper to give the vegan garlic butter a further taste lift.

Adding Cheesiness

Vegan garlic bread is delicious, but you may like it with some vegan cheesiness. Either sprinkle some nutritional yeast between the slices or use a vegan parmesan or mozzarella. You can also combine the two cheeses.

Besides the ingredients, you will also need a bread knife, baking sheet, parchment paper (for garlic bread slices), and foil (for wrapping garlic bread) to make your vegan garlic bread.

Quick Steps to Make Vegan Garlic Bread

Learn how to make vegan garlic bread, and you can have garlicky and rich garlic bread ready in less than 30 minutes to accompany any meal.

It requires the following quick steps:

1. Cut the baguette in half, then cut each half into slices without cutting them through.
2. Mix the vegan butter, crushed garlic, herbs, sea salt, and pepper in a bowl.
3. Smeat the vegan butter and garlic mix on both sides of each slice of bread and to the tops of the loaves to ensure it melts through.
4. Wrap each loaf in foil and bake for 15 minutes.
5. Enjoy warm!

It’s so easy to prepare vegan garlic bread that you may make more than you need. Or you might want to prepare a batch to freeze. Is it possible to serve leftover garlic bread or to freeze it?

You can keep freshly baked garlic bread in an airtight container at room temperature or fridge for up to 48 hours. Reheat before serving it. Remember to remove the foil if reheating in the microwave. You can also freeze leftover vegan garlic bread for up to 3 months.

To freeze, arrange the baked garlic bread slices on a baking tray. Freeze them for 1 hour. Once frozen, transfer the garlic bread to freezer bags. Remove excess air before sealing the packets with the vegan garlic bread and storing them in the freezer. Thaw at room temperature for a few hours. Reheat leftover garlic bread leftovers in the microwave, air fryer, or oven until warm and crispy.

You can also prepare garlic bread a few days in advance if you are planning a dinner. Once ready, wrap it in foil and place it in the fridge, ready to bake when needed.

Delicious Vegan Garlic Bread Variations

Now that you know how to make vegan garlic bread the classic way, how about trying some exciting variations? We have already covered one variation: making cheesy garlic bread with mozzarella, parmesan, or nutritional yeast. We have also discussed interesting herb variations.

Here are some more delicious vegan garlic bread variations to try:

Spicy Vegan Garlic Bread

• Add your preferred red pepper flakes and cayenne pepper to taste to the garlic butter mixture.
• Spread on the bread and bake as directed.

Pesto Vegan Garlic Bread

• Use ¼ cup of vegan pesto mixed into the garlic butter mixture. Spread on the bread and bake. For an extra touch, top with a sprinkle of nutritional yeast.

Tomato Basil Vegan Garlic Bread

• Add fresh tomato slices and chopped basil leaves to the top of the bread after spreading it with the vegan garlic butter mixture. Bake covered for a while to allow the tomatoes to soften before opening to crips the crust of the bread.

Mushroom and Vegan Cheese Garlic Bread

• Sauté 1 cup of sliced mushrooms until soft.
• Prepare ½ cup of shredded vegan cheese.
• After spreading the garlic butter mixture, add the sautéed mushrooms and sprinkle with vegan cheese. Bake as directed.

Avocado Garlic Bread

• Mash a ripe avocado. You can spice the avo with a sprinkle of red pepper flakes and lemon juice.
• Bake the vegan garlic butter bread. After baking, spread the mashed avocado on top of the warm bread.

Olive Tapenade Garlic Bread

• You’ll need ½ cup of olive tapenade, homemade or bought.
• After spreading the garlic butter mixture, spread a layer of olive tapenade over the bread and bake as directed.

Olive Oil Garlic Bread

Olive oil does work if you don’t have vegan butter or prefer not to use it. Blend ½ cup of olive or avocado oil with the other ingredients in a small food processor. It makes the mixture more spreadable. Spread it on bread slices and bake. Get the full details for the Olive Oil Garlic Bread recipe from Living My Vegan Life.

Making vegan garlic bread is a delightful way to enjoy a classic meal accompaniment while accommodating a plant-based lifestyle. It offers all the savory, buttery flavors of traditional garlic bread but uses vegan butter and simple, wholesome ingredients that are kinder to animals and the environment.

Additionally, vegan garlic bread is inclusive, ensuring that those with dairy allergies, lactose intolerance, or ethical dietary choices can indulge in this tasty treat. Whether as a side dish, appetizer, or snack, vegan garlic bread is a versatile and satisfying option for everyone to enjoy.