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These easy Homemade Pull Apart Italian Sub Sliders are such a fun and easy appetizer for relaxed nights of entertaining family and friends. Soft dinner rolls stuffed with red pepper sauce, assorted deli meats, and a mix of both mozzarella and provolone cheese. Each handheld Italian-style sub slider is spicy and layered with peppers. They’re cheesy on the inside, yet golden and toasted outside, with a delicious garlic butter topping. Serve these sliders warm for a truly simple appetizer that everyone will love.

Pull Apart Italian Sub Sliders | halfbakedharvest.com

A heads up for this week, it’s unintentionally 4th of July appetizer week! When I was preparing recipes for my two weeks of traveling, I really had the mindset of creating 4th of July friendly dishes for you all to prepare this week!

The 4th is, of course, the biggest holiday of the summer. And I know so many of us are looking for simple appetizers and recipes to just throw on the grill. Well, I think I have you covered. So many new appetizers are coming up this week. And each one is unique and delicious in its own way.

Of course, these sliders are a huge family favorite over here. They were very much enjoyed while I was testing out the recipe.

Pull Apart Italian Sub Sliders | halfbakedharvest.com

Here are the details

There is one downside to this dish. It uses the oven and these are best served warm. I know that’s not the most ideal for a 4th of July style recipe, but these are worth it.

Every other element of these sliders gets double thumbs up. They’re incredibly easy to throw together, very hands-off, and totally delicious.

You can even prep the sliders ahead of time and bake them off just before serving.

If you have time, I recommend making my homemade roasted red pepper sauce. It’s actually a recipe I stole from the HBH Every Day Cookbook. But I’m sharing it here too since I wanted you to have it for these sliders.

Pull Apart Italian Sub Sliders | halfbakedharvest.com

It’s the simplest sauce. A jar of roasted red peppers, blended with toasted walnuts, tomatoes, herbs, and spices. It’s currently one of our favorite sauces and really elevates the flavors of these sliders.

If you don’t want to make the sauce, red pepper sauce or sun-dried tomato pesto are easily available in most grocery stores. Or just add some sliced roasted red peppers.

Assembling these slides is simple. I spread on dijon mustard, fig preserves (optional, but truly delicious), and then the red pepper sauce. Layer on assorted deli meats. I love to use prosciutto, spicy salami, Spanish chorizo, or pepperoni.

From here, add slices of mozzarella and provolone cheese. Then finish with fresh arugula.

Pull Apart Italian Sub Sliders | halfbakedharvest.com

The final thing I love to make is garlic butter. I like to spread this over the rolls just before baking. The butter melts down over the rolls and makes them really quite delicious.

You could serve these at room temperature, but they’re definitely best when the cheese has some time to melt in the oven. People LOVE a melty, messy slider.

I like to serve these with red peppers and basil leaves on the side.

Pull Apart Italian Sub Sliders | halfbakedharvest.com

These sliders are like a good old Italian sub sandwich but in a fun new form. And with delicious garlic butter in every bite.

I’m excited for you all to make these this summer! They’re so much fun and they use up a lot of fresh produce too! Be sure to make a double batch when serving a crowd – there never seems to be enough!

Pull Apart Italian Sub Sliders | halfbakedharvest.com

Looking for other summer appetizer recipes? Here are a few ideas: 

Honey Whipped Feta with Garlic Herb Roasted Olives

Soft Garlic Herb Cheddar Cheese Bread

Charred Peppers with Marinated Feta and Tzatziki

Spicy Ranch Chex Mix

Lastly, if you make these Pull Apart Italian Sub Sliders, 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!

Pull Apart Italian Sub Sliders

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings: 12 sliders
Calories Per Serving: 243 kcal

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Ingredients

Instructions

  • 1. Preheat the oven to 400° F.
    2. Place the bottom half of the dinner rolls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spread the dijon over the bottom half of the roll. Add the fig preserves and red pepper sauce (or red peppers). Layer on the olives, pepperoncini, deli meats, basil, mozzarella, provolone, and then arugula. Place the top half of the roll over the cheese. 
    3. In a bowl, mix together the butter, garlic, Italian seasoning, and parmesan. Spread the butter over the top of the rolls, reserving extra for serving. Cover the rolls with tin foil and bake 10-15 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking another 10-15 minutes, until the cheese has melted.
    4. Brush with any remaining garlic butter, serve immediately with additional red pepper sauce on the side.

Notes

Roasted Red Pepper Sauce: 
Makes 2 cups 
1 (12-ounce) jar roasted red peppers, drained
1/2 cup toasted walnuts or pine nuts
1/4 cup tomato paste or packed sun-dried tomatoes 
2 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons fresh parsley 
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic or sherry vinegar
2 teaspoons raw honey
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
kosher salt
Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth, about 1 minute. Store in the fridge, in an airtight container, for up to 2 weeks. 
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Pull Apart Italian Sub Sliders | halfbakedharvest.com

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Comments

  1. 3 stars
    What a wonderful recipe for a holiday party! I made these coupled with the holly jolly citrus Christmas cocktail and holiday charceuterie board. My only note for revision to this recipe would be to reduce the amount of time in the oven by half, I followed the exact times both covered and uncovered with foil and the bread burned very badly on the bottom and top. Other than that, these are absolutely fabulous and I will definitely make again!!

  2. 5 stars
    We moved to Mumbai, India a year ago. We can’t always get the same ingredients that are readily available in the States, and luckily this was one recipe we could source all the supplies for! We made it using fresh pav, Indian bread. It was a delicious holiday treat the whole family enjoyed! Thanks for continuing to make great, accessible and fun recipes.

  3. 5 stars
    Wow these were great! I was a little nervous about how the sauces would taste together but the combination was so tasty. Will definitely be making these again 🙂

    1. Hi Lindsay,
      Happy Monday!!🇺🇸😎 I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback, so glad to hear it was a winner! xT

  4. 3 stars
    Love your recipes! This one wasn’t a personal favorite of mine or my husbands, but a lot of my girlfriends loved it when I made it for our game night. We both hate mustard so I would love to try it without the mustard next time. Otherwise I bet we would have loved it!

    1. Hi Olivia,
      Thanks for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback, sorry to hear it was not enjoyed! xx

  5. Hi Tieghan! Loved you on the Skinny Confidential podcast. I am going to make these for Book Club tomorrow. I am worried if I prep them tonight the bread might get soggy with the sauce. What are your recommendations? Thank you!

    1. Hey there,
      Thanks for listening to the podcast!! These should be just fine for you to make ahead! I hope you love the recipe! xT