Meatball Stuffed Garlic Bread has cheese-smothered meatballs nestled in crispy toasted garlic bread then baked to gold perfection.
Meatball Stuffed Garlic Bread
Meatball Stuffed Garlic Bread combines two Italian favorites – Italian-Style Meatballs and Garlic Bread – into one delicious dish.
This recipe is super simple to prepare. You’ll start with some small dinner or finger rolls, separating the tops from the bottoms and scooping out the insides to form a “boat” or cavity. (Use the inside bread to make the meatballs.) Then slather the rolls with garlic butter and toast in the oven.
Once the garlic bread is toasted, place two meatballs in each cavity, top with tomato sauce and three kinds of shredded cheese and bake again until golden and melted.
Serve your Meatball Stuffed Garlic Bread as a game day party appetizer or an easy comfort food lunch or dinner. (Kids and grownups alike will love this recipe!)
Key Ingredients & Substitutions
- Any Small Bread Roll – Such as finger rolls, larger sized dinner rolls, frozen half-baked rolls, or small crusty rolls. We saw several options in the market when we shopped for this.
- Garlic butter – Butter, garlic, and parsley
- Meatballs – Prepare our Baked Italian-Style Meatballs for this recipe.
- Tomato Sauce – Your favorite jarred sauce is fine, or make our homemade Italian Tomato Sauce recipe.
- Cheese – Use a combination of shredded orange sharp cheddar, shredded mozzarella and grated Parmesan cheeses.
Cooking Tips & Tricks
The meatball recipe included in the recipe card below makes about 85-90 meatballs in total, but you’ll only need 24 for this recipe. You can either make the whole batch and freeze leftover meatballs for other recipes (such as our Meatball Parmesan or Meatball Lasagna) or cut the recipe down and make only a third.
Meatball Stuffed Garlic Bread
Meatball Stuffed Garlic Bread has cheese-smothered meatballs nestled in crispy toasted garlic bread then baked to gold perfection.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
24 one-ounce Italian-style meatballs, see recipe here
1 dozen finger rolls or similar small-size roll
1 stick salted butter
2 tablespoons minced fresh garlic
1 teaspoon dried parsley
8-ounce block orange sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
8-ounce package shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2–2 cups jarred tomato sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Make meatballs using this recipe. Note that the full recipe makes about 85-90 meatballs so you can either make the whole batch and freeze the leftover meatballs for other recipes (which we always do) or make just a third of the recipe.
- Line a medium sheet tray with foil, letting sides flare up. Spray the flaring part with pan spray. This will stop the cheese from sticking to the sides as the finished stuffed roll bakes.
- Carve the tops and insides out from the finger rolls. Use that bread to make the meatballs above. It is easier to remove the top and insides while the bread is frozen. If fresh, the rolls get squished while you try and remove the insides. Lay them out onto the prepared pan.
- Soften the butter in a bowl and stir in garlic and parsley. Do not melt. Use the back of a soup spoon to spread the garlic butter into the 12 rolls.
- Bake uncovered for 8-10 minutes or until slightly browned.
- Shred and mix all three cheeses together.
- Heat the meatballs if they are not already hot and place two meatballs into each toasted roll.
- Spoon on two tablespoons of tomato sauce over each stuffed roll.
- Divide the cheese mixture over each meatball stuffed roll, letting the cheese tumble over the sides of the rolls, but within the boundaries of the flared foil sides.
- Bake uncovered for 8-10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and starting to brown.
- If serving as an appetizer, lay the stuffed rolls out onto a platter. If serving as a meal, serve two stuffed rolls per person.
Notes
Note that the prep and cook times listed do not include time to prepare the meatballs.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I make Meatball Stuffed Garlic Bread ahead of time? You can make the meatballs ahead of time, but it’s best to assemble and bake when ready to serve.
- How do I store leftovers? Store covered and refrigerated for up to three days.
- How do I reheat leftovers? Reheat the meatballs, and place into the garlic bread, cover with fresh sauce and cheese and bake.
- Can I freeze? The meatballs freeze very well, but the assembled meatballs and garlic bread won’t freeze well. To freeze the meatballs, lay them flat in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze. Once they are frozen solid, you can place in a zipper seal bag for storage and easy access.
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