From Olive Oil & Garlic to Garlic Butter.
Garlic Bread is a favorite in any bread basket and in every Italian-American restaurant. While it’s iconically Italian-American, it actually have Italian and even Ancient Roman roots. Learn the garlic bread history and how it evolved to what it is today.
Garlic Bread History
What is Garlic Bread?
Garlic bread is exactly that, garlic on bread but with seasonings to make it all shine. Minced garlic is mixed with olive oil or softened butter and combined with salt and sometimes herbs like oregano. It is then spread on an Italian or French bread like ciabatta, baguette, or sourdough. Finally, the bread is finished off in the oven or grill. Today, you will find garlic bread variations topped with melted cheese.
Ancient Roman and Italian Roots
Garlic bread stems from the Italian bruschetta, bruschetta alla romana to be exact. “Brusciare” meaning to toast, bruschetta alla romana is toasted bread rubbed with garlic and drizzled with oil and salt.
Southern Italy was known for its garlic recipes as that’s where garlic grew in the country. Later, bruschetta evolved to adding tomatoes and basil after tomatoes arrived from the Americas in the 16th century.
And while garlic bread was influenced by bruschetta, bruschetta was influenced by Ancient Roman flatbread topped with olive oil, salt, and herbs.
Italian Immigrants to the Americas
From 1880 to 1924, four million Italians migrated to the US. When they arrived in the Americas, they recreated their homeland’s cuisine using local ingredients. And so America was introduced to pizza, spaghetti, meatballs, garlic bread, and more.
In the case of garlic bread, the US at that time lacked olive oil, so butter was the alternative. Similarly, the French baguette was common and affordable. Soon after in the 1940s, the US enjoyed the popularity of Italian American restaurants featuring pizza, pasta, and garlic bread.
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