Garlic Bread Lasagna French Bread Pizzas

There’s something about French bread pizzas that really take me back to being a kid, although I never ate it when I was young. I think it’s more about the recipe itself and maybe because I would see them in the freezer section all the time. I remember that I would ask my mom if we could get some whenever I’d go to the grocery store with her, but she would say no. Pizza built up on a crusty chewy baguette? What’s not to love about that? I also distinctly remember that French bread pizzas would always have tiny cubes of pepperoni, instead of sliced. Again, I’m basing this all on the fact that I didn’t actually eat them, but would always just ogle at them from the behind the frosty glass of the frozen foods aisle. I’m bringing that excitement back with these Garlic Bread Lasagna French Bread Pizzas! It’s garlic bread meets lasagna meets French bread pizza and it literally doesn’t get any better than this. And if you’ve never taken a slice of leftover lasagna and sandwiched it in between two slices of garlic bread, then you’ve been missing out. But have no fear because this pizza is basically that but 100 times better. 

Let’s start by making the meat sauce for our lasagna pizzas. Set a large skillet over medium-high heat with the olive oil. Once hot, add in the sausage and begin breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Cook until browned and no longer pink. Stir in the onion and a tiny amount of the garlic and cook until softened, about 3 to 5 minutes.

**Tip: I like using hot Italian sausage for this because it’s loaded with so much flavor and I like the spicy kick it has to it, but you can totally use mild or even ground beef, chicken or even turkey!**

Add in the dried Italian seasoning, fennel seeds, dried basil, crushed red pepper flakes, and tomato paste. Cook for about 1 minute to develop their flavor.

**Note: Sausage will already be seasoned (especially with fennel) but I like to add a bit more to really enhance that flavor. If you’re not a big fan of fennel or you just don’t have any on hand, you can leave it out since the sausage will already have some.**

Stir in the tomatoes, reduce heat to low and season with a large pinch of salt and pepper. Simmer, stirring often, until the sauce has thickened, about 20 minutes.

**Tip: This is a great sauce for regular lasagna and so if you want to make homemade lasagna one day, I would just double this recipe and you’ll be good to go!**

In a small bowl, stir together the ricotta, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons parsley, basil, and a pinch of salt and pepper until evenly combined. Set aside.

You can’t have lasagna without a herby ricotta layer! Again, if you’re making regular lasagna, you can just double this recipe. If you’re wanting to make this recipe ahead of time, you can make the ricotta mixture a couple days in advance and keep it in the fridge covered.

Now for the garlic butter. This is garlic bread french bread pizza after all. In a separate bowl, combine the butter, lots of garlic, parsley, and a pinch of salt and pepper until smooth.

**Note: You can also use salted butter for this and just omit the added salt, but I find that sometimes you don’t know exactly how salty the butter will be so I always just use unsalted butter.**

Cut the baguette in half and then cut each half in half once more but like you’re opening a book, so you end up with four flat pieces. Spread each piece of bread with the garlic butter and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil.

Sprinkle with paprika and bake until it begins to brown, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.

**Note: This first bake really sets a good sturdy foundation for the French bread pizzas. Plus is sets the garlic spread in and allows it to melt into the bread perfectly.**

Spread the top of each piece of bread with the ricotta mixture and spread out evenly. Top with the meat sauce and then sprinkle generously with mozzarella.

I’m using just Mozzarella but if you want to bring in different flavor dimensions into the cheese layer, you can use a mixture of mozzarella, provolone, fontina and/or parmesan. It doesn’t matter as long as there is lots of cheese because pizza and lasagna requires lots of cheese.

Bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 10 to 15 minutes. You can also pop it under the broiler for a couple of seconds towards the end to really brown the top, but not necessary. Remove from the oven and garnish with fresh basil.

If you want to make these ahead of time, you can bake it all the way and cool it off then store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Then just reheat in a 350°F oven for about 8 to 10 minutes. 

If you want longer than that, you can also freeze them prebaked on a baking sheet and then once frozen, transfer to a container for freezer bag. Then just bake straight from the freezer for about 18 to 20 minutes. They’ll keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. 

This makes for a great simple weeknight meal. Just serve with a simple green salad on the side and you’ll have a tasty meal in no time. As always, let me know if you have any questions or comments about substitutions. I’m always happy to help! Stay safe out there my friends. 

Garlic Bread Lasagna French Bread Pizzas

Garlic Bread Lasagna French Bread Pizzas are the ultimate comfort food mash-up. It's garlic bread meets french bread pizza meets lasagna and it's delicious!

Servings 4 servings

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Total Time 55 minutes mins

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 pound hot or mild Italian sausage
• 1/2 medium yellow onion diced
• 8 garlic cloves minced (divided)
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 14.5 ounce can crushed tomatoes
• Kosher salt and coarse ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley divided
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil plus more for garnish
• 1/2 cup 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1 large baguette
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Mozzarella

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Set a large skillet over medium-high heat with the olive oil. Once hot, add in the sausage and begin breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Cook until browned and no longer pink. Stir in the onion and a tiny amount of the garlic (the bulk of it will be for the garlic spread later on) and cook until softened, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add in Italian seasoning, fennel seeds, basil, crushed red pepper flakes, and tomato paste. Cook for about 1 minute to develop their flavor. Stir in the tomatoes, reduce heat to low and season with a large pinch of salt and pepper. Simmer, stirring often, until the sauce has thickened, about 20 minutes.
• In a small bowl, stir together the ricotta, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons parsley, basil, and a pinch of salt and pepper until evenly combined. Set aside.
• In a separate bowl, combine the butter, the remaining garlic, remaining parsley, and a pinch of salt and pepper until smooth. Cut the baguette in half and then cut each half in half once more but like you're opening a book, so you end up with four flat pieces. Spread each piece of bread with the garlic butter and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil. Sprinkle with paprika and bake until it begins to brown, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
• Spread the top of each with the ricotta mixture and spread out evenly. Top with the meat sauce and then sprinkle generously with mozzarella. Bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and garnish with fresh basil. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

Author: The Candid Appetite