Mushroom Cheese Bread

Original Recipe Found in Taste of Home's 2006 Quick Cooking Annual Recipes

I rely on frozen, not-homemade garlic bread way too often, but we all love it...a hard, lazy habit to break.  So I was in the market for some new variations on a favorite side.  This was an easy way to dress up plain bread and more special than just tossing some shredded mozzarella on the frozen loaf.

I thought that there wasn't enough topping for an entire loaf of Italian bread, so I only used half of one.  This was a mistake, as the topping couldn't melt enough and the bread didn't get as crispy as I'd have liked.

Ingredients

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 can (4 oz) mushroom pieces, drained or 1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced thin

1/3 cup mayonnaise

2 Tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

2 Tablespoons chopped green onion

2 teaspoons Italian seasoning [optional]

1 loaf (1 pound) unsliced French or Italian bread

Directions

(1) Slice loaf in half length-wise.  Toast or broil until just crisped (not browned).

(2) In bowl, combine mozzarella, mushrooms, mayonnaise, parmesan, and onion.  Spread mixture over bread.

(3) Broil 5-10 minutes or until lightly browned and cheese is melted.

Notes: I used Italian bread this time, so I'll try French the next.  I'll also add some garlic powder to the cheese mixture.

Kid Participation:

* Mix topping ingredients together

* Spread cheese mixture over bread (if cooled)