Olive Cheese Bread
The ultimate easy appetizer, this olive cheese bread comes together in just minutes with minimal ingredients! Bread lovers, cheese lovers and olive lovers alike are going to enjoy this quick and easy snack!
You’ll Love This
- It requires very little prep work! Mix the ingredients, spread them on the bread and bake! It really doesn’t get much easier than that! This would be a good recipe to have your kiddos help out with too. They can help mix and then get their hands dirty spreading the olive mixture onto the bread.
- It takes out the middle man – the bowl! This is basically like a cheesy olive dip, minus the middle man! We’re taking away the bowl (just another dirty dish you don’t have to wash – score!) and just putting the dip RIGHT ON the bread. You’re welcome!
- It tastes AMAZING! This olive cheese bread is like garlic bread meets olive salsa with LOTS of cheese and a little zing of green onion. It’s the perfect salty appetizer for a date night in or to share with your friends at your next Packer party!
Instructions
In a medium bowl combine sour cream, garlic powder and butter along with a large pinch of salt and pepper.
Stir until mostly smooth.
Add cheese and green onion.
Stir until well combined.
Add olives.
Gently fold olives into the cheese mixture.
Slice French bread loaf in half widthwise and then in half lengthwise.
Divide the olive mixture between the four pieces, spreading it in an even layer on the cut side of the bread.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted and the ends start to get golden brown.
Broil for 1-2 minutes or until the cheese starts to get dark golden brown. Slice, garnish with fresh parsley and enjoy!
Tips
- Buy a block of Monterey Jack and shred it yourself. It’s cheaper and although it’s a bit more work, you’ll end up with a meltier, ooier, gooier cheese bread! Pre-shredded cheeses typically have cellulose on them which prevents the shreds from sticking together. It also prevents them from melting well.
- Buy whole olives and slice them yourself. I realize this can seem a bit tedious, but when I buy sliced olives it always seems that they’ve started to break down in the briney liquid and don’t hold their shape as well. I much prefer draining the liquid off a jar of whole olives and slicing them myself so they can retain their shape. Just make sure you buy pitted olives!!
- You can also roughly chop the olives if you’re not in the mood for slicing. I don’t always have time to slice the olives either! So when I’m in a hurry, I like to just roughly chop the olives. You’ll end up with the same flavors – you just won’t have the round shape of the olives. Not the end of the world!
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I use low fat sour cream and cheese?
- I highly recommend using full fat sour cream and regular (not low fat) cheese. This is not a “healthy” appetizer so don’t try to make it one! Indulge in full fat dairy and enjoy your life!
- What kind of bread works best for this recipe?
- I like to use a crusty French baguette or sour dough bread. Mostly because that’s usually what I have on hand but also because it seems to stand up to the thick, rich, creamy olive mixture. I usually keep a loaf of this bread in the freezer so I can be prepared at a moment’s notice for baked brie, spinach dip or olive tapenade!
- What if I don’t like black/green olives?
- I am not a huge fan of black olives. I will never eat one raw by itself. I can tolerate them on cold taco dip. I like them more when they’re on a warm veggie pizza. But I actually REALLY enjoy them on this cheesy olive bread!
- Green olives on the other hand…I could eat a whole jar of them with a fork on a Wednesday afternoon. And then again on Thursday. And then on Friday. I love love love green olives.
- So if you’re a black olive lover and a green olive hater, use all black olives. If you’re taste leans the other way, use all green olives. Just keep the amount of total olives the same and you’ll be fine!
Easy Cheesy Appetizers
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Olive Cheese Bread
The ultimate easy appetizer, this olive cheese bread comes together in just minutes with minimal ingredients! Olive lovers, cheese lovers and bread lovers alike are going to love this quick and easy snack!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 10 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 6 oz. full fat sour cream
- 4 tablespoons softened butter
- 7 oz. green olives, drained and sliced
- 6 oz. black olives, drained and sliced
- 8 oz. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 8–10 oz. loaf French bread
- Kosher salt
- fresh cracked pepper
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a medium bowl combine sour cream, garlic powder and butter along with a large pinch of salt and pepper. Stir until mostly smooth.
- Add cheese and green onion and stir until well combined.
- Fold olives into the cheese mixture.
- Slice French bread loaf in half widthwise and then in half lengthwise.
- Divide olive mixture between the four pieces, spreading it in an even layer on the cut side of the bread.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted and the ends start to get golden brown.
- Broil for 1-2 minutes or until the cheese starts to get dark golden brown.
- Slice, garnish with fresh parsley and enjoy!
Equipment
Buy Now → Notes
Buy a block of Monterey Jack and shred it yourself. It’s cheaper and although it’s a little more work, you’ll end up with a meltier, ooier, gooier cheese bread! Pre-shredded cheeses have cellulose on them which prevents the shreds from sticking together. It also prevents them from melting well.
Buy whole olives and slice them yourself. I realize this can seem a bit tedious, but when I buy sliced olives it always seems that they’ve started to break down in the briney liquid and don’t hold their shape as well. I much prefer draining the liquid off a jar of whole olives and slicing them myself so they can retain their shape. Just make sure you buy pitted olives!!
You can also roughly chop the olives if you’re not in the mood for slicing. I don’t always have time to slice the olives either! So when I’m in a hurry, I like to just roughly chop the olives. You’ll end up with the same flavors – you just won’t have the round shape of the olives. Not the end of the world!
Hi I just found your recipe for OliveCheese Bread, would a ciabatta bread be okay for this recipe?
Yes! Ciabatta would work great for this cheese bread recipe. Great question, Janet!
Can I make the spread the day before and spread and cook the next day?
Yes! That will work great!!
Can this recipe be done in a toaster over or air fryer? I don’t have an oven. Also, can I add a little shredded chicken to make it more of a meal?
Thank You!
Yes and yes! Both are great ideas, Esther! I think a toaster oven or air fryer would work well. And yes shredded chicken would be a delicious addition!!
Hi,
Wondering if cream cheese might work instead of sour cream…
Yes! It will just be a bit thicker – you may need to thin it with heavy cream!
Made this tonight for a patio dinner as an appetizer, so good!!
Your website sucks. I can’t print without pictures, etc. and I can’t save to Pinterest.
Hi Colette! So kind of you to share your thoughts. It’s actually very easy to print my recipes without pictures. Simply click the “print” button in the recipe card. Then uncheck “images”. You can also choose to remove the “description” and “notes” sections. Then the recipe will print without pictures. If you’re still having issues, then you need to check your print settings on your device. If you’d like to save the recipe to Pinterest, you have two options. You can use the round blue Pinterest button at the top of the post. Just click it and save it to your preferred board. You can also use the “pin recipe” button in the recipe card as well. Hope that helps!
I absolutely agree. I’m so sick of these pins that bombard you with so many ads – that you can’t get rid of – and make it difficult to read. Pinterest seems to be loaded with them.
Can this be transported to a function and served at room temperature?
Great question! I think it would work just fine but I wouldn’t let it sit out for too long as the cheese will harden and it just won’t be quite as delicious. Another option would be to bake it, slice it, take it to the event, and then serve it from a warm crock pot. I have a 9×13 slow cooker that I am envisioning that would work really well for this. I’ll link it here: https://amzn.to/3uhmMvv Just be sure to line the crock pot with aluminum foil so that the cheese bread doesn’t stick to it.
Great stuff! I was thinking it might be too salty but it was nicely balanced!
Made this for my family gathering during Christmas and I have to say it was delicious. Definitely will make again. Just wondering, can this be prepared and frozen. Thank you
I am not sure as I haven’t tried it but I’d love to hear how it goes if you give it a try. I think it could work well!
Recipe looks great! Going to try it for SuperBowl Sunday.
Suggestion about slicing olives: we use a metal egg slicer with fine results.
That is a brilliant tip, Christine!! How have I never thought of that?! That would save TONS of time and give you the perfect slice! Thanks for sharing and thank you for taking the time to leave a star rating and review 🙂