Heidi Swanson's Dad's Garlic Bread

This recipe is from Heidi Swanson's 101cookbooks.com. You should check it out; she's a great cook! Her notes: "The size of your baguette will determine how much butter and garlic you'll use. My dad uses roughly one head of garlic for each stick of butter."

• Ready In: 35 mins
• Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• 1  loaf  artisan  French bread or 1  loaf  wide baguette
• 1 -2  head garlic
• 1⁄2-1  cup unsalted butter
• 1  bunch chives (optional)
• 1  lemon, zest of (optional)

Directions

1. As told to Heidi by her father: Slice that loaf of bread right up the middle so you have two halves (He uses his serrated knife for this).
2. Set them on their backs, cut side up.
3. Mince the garlic or push it through one of those crushers - either way is fine. Now add it to the butter you should be melting in a small saucepan.
4. Take a basting brush (or any brush for that matter - pastry, etc) and start slathering the garlic butter all across that bread. Really go for it, let it soak inches. Make sure you get all those garlic chunks evenly distributed.
5. If you are going to freeze the bread for later, this is when you do it - you don't want to bake, then freeze.
6. He recommends the 'double-bake' as he calls it. This is when you bake at a standard temperature (350 degrees) for 10 to 15 minutes to heat the bread (particularly if it is coming out of the freezer), and then brown it off for color under the broiler for a minute or two.
7. When the bread is finished broiling let it cool for a minute or two. This is when I sprinkle with the lemon zest and chives (and to be honest, I sprinkle a bit of zest on the bread before it goes in the oven too because I like that roasted lemon flavor alongside the garlic.)
8. Slice and serve.
9. The short version of this recipe: Cut, slather, bake, brown, slice.