This easy pizza pull apart bread is bursting with flavor from garlic powder + Italian herbs mixed right into the dough, alongside a savory filling of melted cheese, pepperoni, and garlic butter. It's the perfect appetizer or side dish for game day or your next weekend baking project!
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Skip Takeout and Make this Pizza Party Bread Instead!
Whenever I'm planning to share a homemade loaf, pull-apart bread is my go-to. It's so fun to serve warm & listen to the ooh's and ahh's as the cheesy, buttery bread is torn apart. And this tear and share pizza bread is one of my favorite snacks, stuffed with pepperoni, mozzarella, and Italian herbs + garlic butter. But honestly, I've shamelessly eaten it as its own meal alongside a big green salad + fizzy mocktails.
Inspired by my cheesy pull apart bread, I use mozzarella for that epic cheese-pull. But I made sure this loaf is versatile enough that you can swap in your favorite cheese - I've also used Parmesan and cheddar which were delicious. And while we're customizing, I've even served this cheesy pizza loaf with marinara sauce for a little tear-dip-bite action - so yummy!
Let's Gather Our Ingredients: milk, sugar, instant yeast, eggs, butter, all purpose flour, garlic powder, Italian herb seasoning, mozzarella cheese, and pepperoni.
Let's Bake Bread Together!
1. Whisk the milk, sugar, yeast, eggs, and softened butter.
2. Mix in the flour, garlic powder, Italian herbs, and salt.
3. Knead the dough.
5. Mix the garlic butter.
7. Spread with garlic butter & cut into 16 rectangles.
9. Arrange the slices in a loaf pan & proof.
4. Let it rise.
6. Roll out the dough.
8. Top with shredded mozzarella and pepperoni.
10. Bake, remove from the pan & enjoy!
Carissa's Hot Take
I tested this recipe numerous times to get the ingredients juuust right. So don't go overboard with your fillings - we want just enough to flavor it, but not enough to glue the slices together.
Tips for Baking the Perfect Loaf from Scratch
- Even Slices: To get even-sized slices so there aren't any large bulges or dips in the loaf, I use a ruler to measure before I cut the rolled-out dough.
- Golden Crust: While you can line your loaf pan with parchment paper for easier cleanup, I find that just greasing it with some butter or oil provides the perfect golden brown, crispy crust, since the bread is in direct contact with the pan.
- Perfectly Baked: In testing, I found that a kitchen thermometer is essential to make sure the center is baked, since the fillings can cause it to still be raw in the center even after the outside looks done.
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Cheesy Pull Apart Pizza Bread Loaf
Equipment
Ingredients
BREAD DOUGH
- ⅔ cup milk
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2¼ teaspoons instant yeast (one packet)
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons Italian herb seasoning
- 1½ teaspoons salt (use either table salt or fine sea salt)
FILLING
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 3 ounces pepperoni
Instructions
- Warm the milk: In a microwave-safe bowl, warm the milk in the microwave for about 1 minute, until it's between 98°F to 105°F.
- Mix the Wet Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, whisk the warm milk with the sugar, instant yeast, eggs, and softened butter.
- Add the Dry Ingredients: Add the flour, garlic powder, Italian herb seasoning, and salt. Mix with a large wooden spoon until it forms a soft dough.
- Knead: On a lightly floured work surface, knead the dough by hand for about 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. (Or knead the dough in a stand mixer with a hook attachment for about 3 minutes.)
- Rise: Place the dough ball back in the mixing bowl and cover it with a clean kitchen towel. Let the dough rise in a warm spot until it has doubled in size, after about 1 hour.
- Filling: Mix the softened butter, garlic powder, and salt in a bowl until it forms a thick paste. Set aside.
- Shape and Fill the Dough: Grease a 9-inch by 5-inch loaf pan and set aside. On a clean work surface, roll out the dough until it's about 12 inches by 16 inches. Spread the butter mixture over the dough in an even layer, all the way to the edges.
- Divide the Dough: Cut the dough into 12 even squares (4 inches by 4 inches) (3 squares by 4 squares). Then cut each square in half, so you have 24 small rectangles of dough.
- Pizza Toppings: Sprinkle the mozzarella and pepperoni evenly on top.
- Add to the Loaf Pan: Place each rectangle of dough in the prepared loaf pan. To get all the dough pieces to fit, I sit my loaf pan on one of the smaller edges and gently press the dough rectangles in the loaf pan towards the edge to make more room.Sprinkle any leftover mozzarella on top of the loaf.
- Proof: Cover the loaf pan with a kitchen towel. Set aside to proof for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until the loaf has puffed up. The dough is done proofing when an indent made by your finger springs back to its original shape after 2-3 seconds.
- Bake: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake for 45 to 60 minutes, until the loaf is golden brown and reaches an internal temperature of 180°F. I usually add a large piece of aluminum foil folded in half over my bread after 20 minutes, to prevent the top from getting too brown. Allow the loaf to cool for 10 minutes, then remove it from the loaf pan to tear & share!
Notes
- I usually place a baking sheet under the loaf pan, just to catch any possible fillings that bubble over.
- If you're feeling fancy, once your loaf comes out of the oven, brush the top with melted butter & sprinkle with fresh chopped herbs.
I'm eggcited to hear from you :)