Genius Dip Pairings For Next-Level Garlic Bread

Garlic bread is a staple in Italian-American cuisine. It goes with salad, pasta, or even pizza, and it's an easy enough snack to make yourself. Of course, you can just eat it on its own, but next time you're planning to make a hearty dip, you might want to consider pairing it with some crispy, flavorful garlic bread.

In its most basic form, garlic bread is just toasted Italian bread topped with butter and fresh garlic. You can add other ingredients, like a little olive oil, some shredded parmesan, and fresh parsley for garnish, as long as it keeps that same rich, garlic flavor. But when used as a vessel for dip, it's ideal because it doesn't fall apart as easily as a thin potato or tortilla chip. That means it's a great for eating with thicker, cream-based dips like spinach and artichoke, but it can be dipped in something as simple as a quick marinara sauce, too.

It's common to pair crostini with dips that are a bit heavier, so just swap crispy French or Italian bread with your garlic variety to add a whole new flavor element to your appetizer. Cream cheese-based dips or those with melted cheese — such as a cheesy corn dip or a hot French onion dip — could use garlic bread's sturdiness.

If you want to keep it easy and have the garlic bread stand out, you can also go lighter than cheesy dip. Use infused olive oil instead. Add roasted garlic, crushed red pepper, a little sea salt, and some parsley to some oil, then let it infuse, and it becomes a delicious bread dip. Or, keep it classic with homemade marinara sauce. This seasoned tomato sauce will absolutely complement the bread's garlicky flavor. You could even add some parmesan or mozzarella to the bread to give the flavor illusion of pizza.

The garlic bread doesn't just have to be for dipping. Rather than slicing the bread, you can turn the entire loaf into the base for the dip. Just hollow out the center of some Italian bread (set the bread chunks aside for dipping later), then fill it with fresh garlic, a little salt, and softened butter. Keep in mind, the butter should be softened, not melted, or it will evaporate while it cooks and leave you with dry bread. Bake it until the bread is just toasted, then remove it from the oven and fill it with the dip.

Now, the garlic bread acts as a serving dish for the dip. Serve it with the hollowed-out bread, and once that's done, guests can break off pieces of the bread boat for a perfect balance of garlic bread and dip — no more dipping required. Note: This works better with cream-cheese based dips rather than thinner dips because the creamy dip won't easily absorb into the bread.