Next Post
Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken Pasta.
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
This festive Pull Apart Christmas Tree Garlic Bread is light, soft, buttery, garlicky, perfectly salted, and SO delicious. Serve this warm right out of the oven with a light sprinkle of flaky sea salt and marinara for dipping. It’s melt in your mouth good…and oh so impressive. This is simpler than you’d think to make, and such a fun pull-apart bread for all of your upcoming holiday dinners.
I’ve already made a pull apart wreath so I figured it was time to add a Christmas tree to the mix! I’ve seen these for years, but wanted to give it my own touch. And you guys, I love this bread!
It’s oddly simpler than you’d think to make (you have to look at the photos, visuals make it much easier). And so flipping good! It’s hard to beat garlic bread, but shape it like a Christmas tree?
Yes, it’s just that much better.
I’ve wanted to make this for a long time. Last year I ran out of days in December. So this year I put it on our content calendar way back in October…and never moved it off. When I told my mom the idea, she immediately said, “oh you have to make that!!”.
In our house, no holiday dinner is complete without a side of homemade bread. Most of the time I’ll make some form of a soft, buttery roll. But this year I wanted something a bit more festive.
Going into this recipe I wasn’t sure how it would turn out, I was actually nervous. I just wanted it to work and turn out great so badly! I had a vision in my head and it needed to match! And thankfully I got it just right!
It’s delicious, festive, and well…it smells amazing while baking away in the oven.
I know this bread might look like it takes hours to make, but trust me, it’s not as tricky as you think. First, make a milk-based bread dough, roll it out, then cut the dough into a triangle. Next, spread on plenty of roasted garlic butter. Then add another triangle of dough on top.
From here, simply cut slits up the tree and twist them! Seems crazy, I know, but it’s going to be great!!
Use the photos as a visual guide, they will really help!
Flour, instant yeast, and a pinch of salt with milk, eggs, and butter. The combination creates a beautiful golden crust on the outside, but the inside stays incredibly soft and fluffy.
I prefer to use instant yeast to keep the dough making process quick and simple! It also prevents the dough from rising too much in the oven, which helps the tree keep its shape better.
Roasting garlic is really easy. If you’ve never done it before it really adds a layer of deliciousness to your recipes.
Slice the top portion of the garlic head off to reveal the cloves. Then place the garlic on a small piece of foil, drizzle with olive oil, and wrap the garlic up. Roast for about forty minutes, until the garlic is deeply golden and soft.
I like to mash the garlic with butter, parmesan, and herbs. Nothing fancy, but wow, so good.
What’s great about this pull apart bread is that while it’s a nice addition to your dinner party menu, it also works as an appetizer. It would be nice to have this ready just as your guests arrive. They can snack on bread and enjoy cocktails before dinner. It’s always nice to have something for people to graze over while chatting away.
The most important thing you must do? Serve the bread warm with a sprinkle of flaky sea salt.
Truly nothing is more delicious. I can’t wait to serve this to my family on Christmas Eve…my brothers and Asher are already excited. They all love a soft garlic bread!
Looking for other bread recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Easy Pull Apart Garlic Parmesan Bread
Salted Honey Butter Parker House Rolls
Herby Everything Cheddar Swirl Buns
Lastly, if you make this Pull Apart Christmas Tree Garlic Bread, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
I’ve made this a few times now and we love it! Today I am being less fun and just using it to make herby buttery cheesy breadsticks. Thanks for all the great recipes.
Hey Becky,
Awesome!! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe out, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Hi Tieghan,
my daughters and I had so much fun making this for our Christmas Eve appetizer! We split the dough in half so that we could enjoy it again on New Year’s Eve and both were delicious. Thanks for sharing your creativity and innovative recipes! Five stars!
Lawrie
Boulder, CO
Hi Lawrie,
Wonderful! I really appreciate you giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan
Its wonderful recipe. I made it today. Loving the taste, unique!
Thanks for sharing.
Hi there,
Happy Sunday! Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was a winner! xxTieghan
Made this and was disappointed. It came out perfectly cute after baking however the end product was really dry. Maybe I over kneaded it but as I was kneading it, I noticed the dough was really dry as well so added a bit extra milk. I think this recipe would be great if the dough was more moist cause it looks adorable and is a show stopper.
Hey Angelina,
So sorry to hear this. Was there anything you may have adjusted in the recipe? What kind of yeast did you use? Let me know if I can help in anyway! xTieghan
I cook a lot but baking isn’t my norm so I was a little intimidated by this make-from-scratch Christmas tree-DON’T BE! I made 2 because I had enough dough for 2 and the first was a “test run” for my immediate family. They LOVED it! I took the second that afternoon to my extended family’s party. It was gone in minutes! People were complaining they didn’t get any to try. It was great-THANKS!
Hey Sonya,
Fantastic!! I am so glad that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a try. Have the best week! xTieghan
We did 375 for 20ish minutes – came out great! Dough was a touch dry, we probably used too much in the final kneading process
Hi there,
Happy Sunday! So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks a lot for making it! xxT
Sad disaster after all the work. Burnt mess. Oven temp of 400 too hot, should have known 25 mins too long. Maybe 350 for 15 if you are trying to make it. Recommend edit on recipe for time and temp
Hi there,
So sorry to hear this, thanks for giving the recipe a try! xTieghan
I made this wonderful looking bread this evening. I baked it on a cookie sheet and had a huge oven fire from all the butter!!! Between oven fire and the mess I had to clean up, I will not make this again.
Hi Ann,
Fantastic! Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Happy New Year!? xxT
Did you lower your oven temperature for baking? I had my twists in at 400 for 10 minutes and they were too baked already. I’m wondering if maybe my dough was thinner too because it seemed like I had a lot of excess dough.
Hey Lauren,
So sorry to hear this! I did bake at 400F. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
This turned out beautifully. My family was impressed at how much it looked like the picture, and my 18 year old will make it himself for sure..
Hi Lisa,
Awesome! I love to hear this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for giving it a go! Happy New Year!? xTieghan
Amazing! Family all loved on Christmas Eve -making for New Year’s Eve, just because!! Definitely watch the video. I put all the dough ingredients in my bread maker – can’t get much easier.
Hey Katie,
Wonderful! I am thrilled to hear this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for giving it a go! Happy New Year!? xTieghan
I made this for Christmas and what a hit! It was actually pretty straightforward and easy to make. I love that about all of your recipes!
Btw, I’ve tried tagging you on IG several times- my girlfriends and I got together for a “halfbakedharvest” night!!!!! We each made and brought one of your appetizers and a one of your drinks! So much fun! Wish I could add pics here as I’m not sure you saw the ones we tagged you in!?
Hi Suzi,
Fantastic! Love hearing that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try. xTieghan
Hey!
Would this be able to be made ahead of time? Like 5-6 hours and then chill and bake?
Thank you!
Hi Sophia,
Yes, that will work well for you, you can also just leave it on the counter and cover until ready to bake. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
So beautiful and fun, not to mention really easy AND delicious. I made it two days ahead, left it in the freezer and took it out to room temp a few hours before I wanted to bake. The cook time was less for me closer to 20 minutes. Also, I ended up rolling up the extra dough with some of the extra garlic herb butter and had little extra spiral rolls. Will probably be a Christmas staple for me!
Hi Ashley,
Awesome!! I am thrilled to hear this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! Happy Holidays!? xT
Loved the look of this on our Christmas table. I was disappointed in how much leftover dough I had. In the future I will double the garlic sauce recipe and make little twisted wreaths out of the leftover dough.
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try Shannon! xTieghan