Saltine Toffee (aka Christmas Crack Recipe) — They don’t call this stuff ‘Christmas Crack’ for nothing. It’s easy to make, extremely addictive, and combines salty, sweet, crunchy, and chewy into a holiday favorite.
Christmas Crack Recipe
I’ve heard this saltine cracker toffee called Christmas Crack. I think that name is most fitting, but others have more P.C. names for it and some variations on the recipe.
Debbie made Matzoh Caramel Buttercrunch, which inspired Chocolate-Covered Caramelized Matzoh Crunch, which inspired Chocolate Caramel Crackers. They all used matzoh, whereas I used saltines.
Paula Deen also uses saltines and she calls it Pine Bark. Really, Paula? With all that butter, sugar, and chocolate, and the best name you could come up with is Pine Bark?
I call it easy and amazing.
This Christmas crack recipe looks a little long, but I am just being extra thorough explaining the steps. It’s very easy: Boil sugar and butter, pour over saltines, bake, add chocolate chips. Done. But I want to make sure no one messes up their Christmas crack candy so I’m being very detailed.
I recommend making this for a holiday party or as a Homemade Holiday Food Gift for folks on your to-buy-for (or to-make-for) list. You may not necessarily want it all around your house. Because it’s really, really addictive. As the name would imply.
Note that there is no saltine cracker taste, despite its being saltine cracker bark. The crackers make for the perfect toffee base that holds all the gooey, caramely, wonderfulness together. But you definitely don’t bite into the toffee and say oh, this tastes like saltines.
Below is an iPhone picture taken in a very hot Aruba kitchen at about 11:17pm the other night as the chocolate chips were poured over the almost finished crack saltine toffee. Between the 86F degree evening, no A/C in the kitchen, the stovetop that I had on to boil the butter and sugar, and then the 350F oven that was on, I’m pretty sure you could have fried an egg on my forehead I was so hot.
Same thing when I was trying to take the pictures the next day. The Christmas candy crack was literally melting before my eyes.
The brown sugar + butter base and the chocolate top? Not exactly Caribbean heatproof. Best to keep this stuff chilled or at normal (wintertime in the U.S.) room temperatures
But this saltine toffee was well worth every hot, melty moment.
What’s in This Christmas Crack Recipe?
To make this saltine toffee recipe, you’ll need:
- Saltine crackers
- Unsalted butter
- Brown sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
How to Make Christmas Crack
Before making the saltine cracker toffee, line a 9×13-inch baking dish with aluminum foil. Do NOT try making this Christmas crack recipe without the foil — you’ll hate yourself later if you skip this step.
Place the Saltine crackers in a single layer in the baking dish. Then, add the butter and sugar to a saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 3 to 5 minutes or until mixture has thickened some.
Stir the vanilla extract into the thickened butter mixture, then pour over the Saltines in the baking dish. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the toffee topping is bubbly.
Once out of the oven, sprinkle the saltine cracker toffee with chocolate chips and wait for 3 to 5 minutes, letting them soften and melt a bit, and then spread and smooth them into an even layer with a spatula.
Let the Christmas crack cool completely on your countertop, then break into pieces and enjoy!
Why Won’t My Chocolate Chips Melt?
Chocolate chips are designed to resist melting, and some are less prone to melting than others. If your chocolate chips don’t seem to be melting, pop the saltine toffee back into the oven after it’s been turned off. Let the toffee sit in the oven for a couple minutes to speed up the melting process.
What Brand of Chocolate Chips Do You Recommend?
I like to bake with Trader Joe’s semi-sweet morsels. You could also use a chopped up chocolate bar.
Can I Make This Christmas Crack Gluten-Free?
Yes, you can easily make this saltine cracker toffee by using gluten-free Saltines.
Tips for Making This Christmas Crack Recipe
When boiling the butter and sugar, take care that your simmer is not too fast or too high because the mixture is prone to bubbling over or scorching. Stir the mixture frequently while it simmers to avoid either from happening.
After you’ve smoothed the chocolate over the saltine toffee, you’re welcome to add nuts, seeds, graham cracker crumbs, toffee bits, dried fruit, candy bits, or swirl in some peanut butter or other nut butter.
You can also use other types of baking chips — such as butterscotch, white chocolate, or peanut butter — either in addition to or in a half-and-half combination with the dark chocolate chips for your top layer.
How Long Does Christmas Crack Last?
If stored in an airtight container, this saltine toffee will last for up to 2 weeks at room temperature or in the freezer for up to 4 months.
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Chocolate Saltine Toffee
Ingredients
- 30 to 40 saltine crackers, I used about 32 crackers
- 1 cup unsalted butter, 2 sticks
- 1 cup brown sugar, packed (I used half light and half dark because that’s what I had)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ to 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, I used one 12-ounce bag of TJ’s semi sweet morsels
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 9 x 13 pan or similar with aluminum foil and spray it very well with cooking spray. Do not try to make this without using foil; you will hate yourself.
- Place saltine crackers in a single layer on the bottom of the pan. Some recipes suggest using a jelly roll pan which may allow for a slightly bigger batch, i.e. 40 crackers, but it’s a bit too shallow for my comfort zone and didn’t want any bubble-overs.
- In a saucepan on the stovetop, combine butter and sugar and bring to a boil while stirring constantly.
- Once a boil is reached, reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 3 to 5 minutes or until mixture has thickened some. Take care not that your simmer is not too fast/too high because it will be prone to bubbling over or scorching. Stir mixture frequently while it simmers to avoid bubbling over or scorching. The taste of burnt butter and sugar is awful so don’t burn it.
- After mixture has thickened a bit, remove it from the heat, wait 30 seconds, add the vanilla extract and stir.
- Pour mixture over the prepared pan with the saltine crackers.
- Bake in for 5- 7 minutes, or until toffee/liquid becomes bubbly.
- After removing the pan from the oven, let it rest for 3 to 5 minutes.
- Sprinkle on the chocolate chips and wait for 3 to 5 minutes, letting them soften and melt a bit, and then spread and smooth them into an even layer with a spatula. * (see note below)
- Let cool very well and if desired for expediting purposes, refrigerate or freeze until hardened. Break into pieces the size of your choice.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for up to 4 months.
Notes
- *Optional: After smoothing the chocolate, add nuts, seeds, graham cracker crumbs, toffee bits, dried fruit, candy bits, or swirl in some peanut butter or other nut butter. Or use other types of chips, such as butterscotch, white, peanut butter, etc. either in addition to or in a half-and-half combination with the dark chocolate chips for your top layer.
- To keep this recipe gluten-free, use GF crackers or make your own GF saltine crackers. To keep vegan, use margarine/Earth Balance and use a vegan cracker.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Edited to add: This Chocolate Saltine Toffee was featured on FoodGawker where the editors of Martha Stewart and Martha’s Circle noticed it and featured it on Martha Stewart’s site. See this post for more info. The news and feature made for one of my happiest and proudest blogging moments. To say I was shocked, but incredibly honored, is an understatement.
I made this today and had to keep four of the DGKs fingers out of it. I had a little snip of it, and it tastes yummy. Now, there was not enough room in my 9×13 for 32 or more crackers without doubling up, and I didn’t double up. Lots of melted creamy chocolate that I think would have covered a sided cookie sheet with no problem. I sprinkled Heath’s bits o’ brickle over the top. I could have eaten the whole bag. I’ll try with a larger pan the next time with sides, but not fill the whole sheet with crackers but use the recommended amount as per your recipe.
The recipe is quite forgiving and can vary based on exact cracker dimensions, exact pan size dimensions, so just kind of eyeball it and use how many ever you need. Glad it turned out great for you! The Heath bits sound perfect!
Made this for my husband’s Christmas party at work. It was a big hit!
Awesome to hear that!
I made this and it is terrible! The carmel/toffee is grainy and the toffee went through the crackers to glue them to the foil! It is inedible. Any ideas?
You’re making caramel sauce essentially and you may wish to google ‘grainy caramel sauce’ or ‘ways to prevent caramel from turning grainy’ and research the changes you need to make. Ive written my suggestions if you re-read the comments to another person who wrote with this issue. Candy-making is a delicate operation and doesn’t always go as planned – just keep trying!
Made these for a work Christmas party, and they taste wonderful! Only problem is that the toffy bottom is really gooey and sticky. Sticking to the plate, each other, and everyone’s fingers. Went almost straight from the oven to the fridge for overnight storing. Do you have this issue? And if not, thoughts?
No I did not but you are essentially making caramel sauce and most people over-cook and end up with rock hard sauce whereas I think you *slightly* undercooked and therefore it was on the runny side. Use your judgment and cook a bit longer next time and see if that does that trick!
Ok, thanks!
I love this recipe! I made it for a Christmas party I went to this week and it was a huge hit. I should have made two batches. This is definitely going in my favorite dessert recipe file.
Thanks for trying it and glad it’s going in the favorite dessert recipe file! And yes to a double batch next time :)
I am looking to make these vegan and have some earth balance in my fridge but on a tight budget to buy the vegan chocolate chips. Can I simply use dark chocolate broken into pieces or will they not melt correctly?
Thanks in advance xx
I think they will be just fine! And just so you know, MANY (not all, so read the labels) but most semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips are inherently vegan and you don’t need to buy ‘special vegan chips’. I learned this when I was vegan; of course read labels. Trader Joe’s chips are naturally vegan but not sure if you have one near you. Just for future reference. Please LMK how the vegan version of this comes out!
Made a batch today and immediately was asked to make more, so I did! They’re so good and easy to make! Great for the holidays :)
I love that you made a double batch of this today! And that it turned out so well and easy for you – that’s wonderful!
You said you used about 32 saltine crackers in a 9×13 dish.
I could only fit 26 crackers in my 9×13 glass dish…
Did you use smaller crackers?
I just hope this isn’t too sweet with less crackers??
All pans vary in size and so do crackers. I wouldn’t worry about it at all. I’m sure it will be just fine.
I learned this in high school home ec, and we called it “Cracker Candy.” I have made it at least once a year for the past 35 years. I have never used aluminum foil. Yes, you have to soak the pan in hot water for cleaning, but it’s not a big deal. Any cookie sheet/jelly roll pan with full edges works fine. It doesn’t boil over. For the people that ended with a gooey mass, they may have used vegetable oil spread instead of butter. It is absolutely essential to use real butter in this recipe. I always boiled the brown sugar/butter for 3 min. and baked it for 5 min, although in a slightly hotter oven. I never tried adding vanilla, but may do that next time. To this day, it is the easiest and most popular treat I make.
Glad to hear you’ve been making this for 35 years and that it’s the most popular treat you make! An oldie but a goodie!
I used ritz instead of saltines this time, came out better than regular saltines!
Sounds like I need to try Ritz!
Should the toffee be crisp/crunchy or should it melt into the cracker? I’ve made this recipe a few times and haven’t figured out the right consistency. I seem to undercook or overcook each time :(
It’s sort of like a crispy/crunchy/chewy all in one. The cracker/coating-toffee is sort of a chewy and then there’s the chocolate, and when that firms up, it has a nice ‘snap’ so I don’t know exactly how to answer your question…there’s all kinds of textures in one!
Thanks for the feedback! The cracker definitely gives it a nice crunch, but the sugar mixture has always been hit or miss for me.