If you’ve had Saltine toffee before, this recipe needs no explanation. Maybe you’re already nodding your head in agreement that this candy recipe, if any candy recipe ever, needed to be slightly scaled down to prevent over-consumption. Personally, I can eat a whole pan of this stuff. I start chipping away at it shortly after breakfast, and before dinner, it’s gone. I’m the same way with my easy fudge recipe, since it’s made with only 2 ingredients.
What is Christmas Crack?
It is commonly referred to as ‘crack toffee,’ a sentiment that I fully understand after one bite. It’s salty, sweet, and it’s chocolatey. What’s not to love? Plus, it’s so simple and a great recipe to bake with kids. Besides the addictive qualities of this saltine toffee, another slippery slope is the ease with which you can whip it up. Got 10 minutes plus 20 minutes of chill time? You have toffee–a toffee made without nuts, even. I always seem to have the ingredients laying around to make this saltine toffee. I love to make pork schnitzel with crushed Saltines before frying, so I’ve always got a few boxes on hand. And chocolate chips, hand-to-mouth, will always and forever be a favorite snack in this house. Add butter and brown sugar (even the hard stuff you forgot about in the back of your pantry), and you’re on your way!
Christmas Crack Ingredients
Saltine Crackers. You need 28 saltine crackers, and please do not use the low-salt version. I just don’t think it tastes right here. Unsalted Butter. It’s unsalted because we’re using salty crackers here, but if all you have is salted butter, it will still work. Chocolate Chips. I recommend semisweet or dark chocolate chips here, because this saltine toffee recipe is super sweet. Milk chocolate chips might be too sweet for most palates. Brown Sugar. Light or dark brown sugar, whatever you have, really. I usually always bake with dark, because I love the molasses flavor so much. If you do too, you would love my brown sugar chocolate chip cookies. Optional toppings: You can sprinkle anything you want on top of this toffee: extra crackers (crushed), crushed candy canes, Christmas sprinkles, or finely chopped nuts.
Equipment to Make Saltine Toffee:
This Quarter Sheet Pan is my favorite, and it comes in a two-pack, in case you want to double the recipe for gift-giving. An Offset Spatula is such a simple but highly effective tool to add to your baking equipment. A small One-Quart Sauce Pan for boiling the butter and sugar is helpful, too.
How to make Christmas Crack (Saltine Toffee)
If you’ve never had Saltine toffee before, I’m going to recommend that you never try it. It will wreck you and your waist line. You should make this small batch recipe, divide it in two for holiday gifts, and delivery it immediately. 8. While the chocolate is still melty, sprinkle over your topping of choice. I used 4 extra crushed up crackers here in the photos for another salty hit. You can use sprinkles, nuts, or crushed candy. Refrigerate the candy for 20 minutes until set, and then break into pieces and serve. 2. Line a quarter sheet pan (the same one I use for my Texas Chocolate Sheet Cake) with aluminum foil. A quarter sheet pan measures 9 x 13 x 1-inch. 6. Slide the crackers and brown sugar mixture into the oven for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, open the oven to check. If the saltine toffee is bubbling, you can remove it from the oven and sprinkle the chocolate chips on top. If it’s not bubbling, slide it back into the oven until it is, for about 3-5 extra minutes. 7. Let the chocolate chips sit on the surface of the toffee for 1 whole minute without touching them. Then, use an offset spatula to smooth the chocolate chips evenly over the surface.
Saltine Cracker Candy Topping Ideas
You can top the toffee with anything you like–pecans, peanuts, heath bar bits, anything crunchy, really. I’m usually giving this as a holiday gift, so I err on the side of caution with nut allergies and just crush extra saltines on top. Plus, I like the even more salt. Plus, extra crushed saltines on top is the best way to keep this nut-free.
How to Store Saltine Toffee:
Once the chocolate hardens, this Christmas crack can be stored at room temperature, as long as it’s slightly cool in your house. Warm temperatures will obviously melt the chocolate and make it soggy. I don’t recommend storing this candy in the fridge, because it will soften the crackers. Just leave it in a cool, dry place, like the pantry.
Saltine Toffee Variations:
Add crushed peppermint or candy canes on top Make it festive with Christmas sprinkles Add an extra crunch with Pretzels instead of extra crushed saltines on top
Storage: Once the chocolate hardens, this Christmas crack can be stored at room temperature, as long as it’s slightly cool in your house. Warm temperatures will obviously melt the chocolate and make it soggy. I don’t recommend storing this candy in the fridge, because it will soften the crackers. Just leave it in a cool, dry place, like the pantry.Optional toppings: You can sprinkle anything you want on top of this toffee: extra crackers (crushed), crushed candy canes, Christmas sprinkles, finely chopped nuts, or crushed pretzel pieces.
