Cheesy Pesto Pull-Apart Bread

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Last night after dinner, as my hands were elbow deep in a sink full of more dirty dishes than I dare admit, my counter top was littered with crumbs and sticky spots, the kitchen garbage can was overflowing, my children were grouchy and so was their mother and there were still several long hours until bed time…well, I got to thinking while I was standing there at that sink.

WHAT is the meaning of life?
No. That wasn’t it.

Why do FOOLS fall in love?
Not really it either. Pretty sure I know the answer to that one. It’s because love is so grand, of course.

The questions rolling through my mind were more of a play by play of my fantastic day. They went something like this.

Why did that yah-hoo at in the Walmart parking lot come within 5 inches of running into me with his window missing garbage sack flying dirty truck.
Yes, ma’am. It crossed my mind.

Why did that 50 pound bag of water softener salt split open when I was loading it into the back of my mini van and pour it’s grainy contents all over my groceries.
Can you blame a girl for wondering? Truly, can you. I’d just finished loading 4 other 50 pound bags of water softener salt into the back of my mini van. Shouldn’t that count for some kind of something wonderful?

Why is it that 5 year olds aren’t allowed to jump off the diving board or go down the big slide at the community pool, if they know how to swim?
A pretty lame thing to dwell on, I admit. But my boys CAN swim, you know. Cross my heart and hope to…well. We don’t want anyone to die I suppose. Which is most likely why they have the rule and all.

Why, oh why! do 99% of the sentences I hear in a day start with “Mom, will you…” or “Mom, can you…” and “Hey, Mom I really need you to…” and so on and so forth.
There are 5 of them, and only 1 of me you know.

And do you want to know the thing that was bothering me the most?

Why I would let myself get all grouchy and bothered on a day like this. It’s not like anything terrible happened. Just regular, hum drum, Plain Jane Ordinary, is all.
Would you be willing to let me blame it on wild and out of wack hormones. Please?

And that’s when I remembered, my friends.

Some days are just like that.
Even in Australia. (Name that book, anyone?)

Crossing my fingers that tomorrows Plain Jane Ordinary turns out to be better than todays Plain Jane Ordinary. 🙂
Say a prayer for my hormones, won’t you? Heaven knows they need all the help they can get.

If you are a pesto lovin’ kind of person, this bread is going to be just the thing you have been waiting for. It’s cheesy, pesto-y and takes just minutes to prepare, really. Make it for dinner, make it for lunch, make it for your Spring Brunch, or Easter Dinner Side Dish Of Wonder, make it for your next Girls Night Out or your March Madness Party Hearty…what ever you make it for.

It’s going to be good. 🙂

Cheesy Pesto Pull-Apart Bread

Time: 10 min. prep + 15 min. baking

Yield: 7 servings

Recipe from Jamie Cooks It Up!

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1 large crusty loaf of bread, unsliced

1 C basil pesto

salt and pepper

2 C mozzarella cheese, grated

1 C Parmesan cheese, grated

1. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray it with cooking spray. Set one large crusty loaf of bread in the center.

2. Slice the bread carefully, without cutting all the way to the bottom of the loaf.

Then slice it going the other direction so that you have lots of little 1 inch squares all over the top of the loaf.

3. Grab yourself about 1 cup of pesto, pour it into a small bowl and add just a bit of salt and pepper. I like to buy Pesto at Costco. It will keep for about a month in the fridge. If I don’t use it all and the expiration date is approaching, I pour it into and ice cube tray, cover it with plastic wrap and store it in the freezer.

4. Using a butter knife, spread pesto inside the loaf along every sliced part of the bread.

5. Pull the slices apart and push a bit of shredded mozzarella cheese and shredded Parmesan cheese into each little crevice.

6. Wrap the bread up in the aluminum foil and bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Uncover the bread and allow it remain in the oven until the cheese is melted and a bit golden in color.

7. Take the bread out of the oven and let it cool just a bit before serving.

***NOTE: This bread is best served warm from the oven. However, if you have leftovers store them in the refrigerator and reheat them in the microwave when you are ready to enjoy them.

Enjoy!