Garlic Bread

Method

1. mince3 min
   with a pinch of the salt
   garlic worked against the board with the flat of the knife until it is a smooth paste — the salt is abrasive and does the work. Chunks left whole scorch to bitterness under the broiler while the paste dissolves into the butter and browns evenly
2. mash2 min
   room temperature butter
   butter + garlic paste + parsley + salt + pepper, mashed with a fork into a uniform spread. Butter that has been melted will not hold the garlic in suspension — it soaks straight into the crumb and leaves the surface dry, so it toasts rather than fries
3. slice2 min
   bread split lengthwise through the middle, cut faces up on a sheet pan — cutting the loaf open before baking is what creates the crisp surface; slicing it afterward only exposes soft crumb
4. top2 min
   edge to edge
   cut faces + garlic butter spread all the way to the crust, since any bare margin will burn black before the buttered center colors at all
5. bake10 min
   375°F / 190°C, uncovered
   loaf halves until the butter has fully melted in and the edges are dry and firm to a fingertip. Uncovered is deliberate: foil traps the loaf's own steam and produces the soft-crumbed variant
6. broil2 min
   high, top rack, watched
   + parmesan if using, until the surface blisters and browns in patches. This is where garlic bread is won or lost — allicin is volatile and a long bake turns it flat and sweet, so the sharp garlic note comes from these last two minutes of fast, dry heat
7. slice1 min
   off the heat
   cut crosswise into 2-inch fingers and serve immediately; standing on the pan lets steam from the crumb migrate up and soften the crust you just built