Christmas Crack Recipe (video)
This cracker candy is chocolaty, crispy and highly addictive! That’s why it’s popularly known as Christmas Crack. This fool-proof Christmas Crack recipe is just 4 ingredients and takes less than 30 minutes to make.
What is Christmas Crack?
It is a type of candy made with saltine crackers coated in toffee and topped with chocolate. It is one of the easiest methods of making candy because you don’t need a candy thermometer or exact measurements. You just need to cook the toffee long enough for it to set. Please note that the toffee is not a hard toffee. It’s firm but when you bite into it, it’s got a soft-sugary texture to it.
Why this recipe is so great:
- Just 4 ingredients. All you need to make this Christmas Crack is butter, brown sugar, saltine crackers, and chocolate – that’s it! Who would have thought to add saltine crackers to toffee, but it’s brilliant. The crackers are what give the toffee its light and crispy texture.
- No candy thermometer required. You just need to boil the butter and brown sugar mixture for 5 minutes exactly. You don’t need to concern yourself with the temperature of the toffee in this recipe, especially since you’ll be baking it in the oven as well.
- It’s so good, you won’t be able to stop eating it! Anyone who has ever had Christmas Crack will tell you that you can’t stop at one. There is just something about the combination of sweet and salty, toffee and chocolate, and a crispy texture that makes it irresistible.
- Here is what some of my readers have to say:
“Best Christmas Dessert EVER!!!! I make this every year and it’s amazing and oh so easy! It usually goes in 10 min:)” – Violet
“So easy, so delish. I’ve made this several times, especially at Christmas, makes for a great hostess gift.” – Suzanne
“Love this recipe! I made it for my office Christmas party and it was the first thing gone. People were raving about it and asking for more! I guess I’ll have to make a double batch next year, lol.” – Amanda
How to make Christmas Crack:
(the ingredient amounts are listed in the printable recipe card further below)
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line a large baking sheet with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Spread the saltine crackers out in a single layer and fold up the edges of the foil to box in the crackers. Set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar over medium heat on the stovetop. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and let it continue to boil for exactly 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Quickly pour over the crackers and spread to cover evenly.
- Bake for 5 minutes (minimum) in the oven or until bubbling. The crackers will expand slightly and shift around a little.
- Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle the chocolate chips on top. Let stand for 1-2 minutes until about half of the chocolate chips look shiny (see picture above).
- Once the chocolate begins to look shiny, it is soft enough to start spreading over the toffee.
- Top with any additional toppings if desired and place in the refrigerator for about 2 hours for the candy to harden.
- Once it has set, peel away the foil. Break the candy by hand or use a sharp knife to cut into pieces.
Expert tips:
- Pan size – A 10×15″ jelly roll pan works best for this recipe. However, any type of baking sheet this size or larger will work. My pan is actually 11×17″ so I just fold up the edges of the foil to keep the crackers in place and prevent the toffee from spilling out onto the pan.
- Lining the pan – Heavy-duty foil works best because it’s easy to peel away. You can use regular foil – just lightly coat with non-stick cooking spray to make it easy to remove. You can also use parchment paper. There is no greasing required if you’re using parchment paper, but just make sure to completely cover the bottom and sides of the pan.
- Cooking the toffee. Once the butter and brown sugar reaches a boil, set a timer, and let it boil for 5 minutes. You want it to be a rolling boil to evaporate some of the moisture, so it becomes like caramel.
- Baking the cracker candy. Bake the saltine toffee in a 350F oven for a minimum of 5 minutes or until bubbling so that the toffee reaches its second boiling point and absorbs into the crackers.
- Melting the chocolate chips. As soon as you remove the tray from the oven, immediately sprinkle the chocolate chips on top. The bubbling toffee should be hot enough to melt the chocolate. Once about half the chocolate chips look shiny, you can start spreading the chocolate to cover the saltine toffee. If you have trouble with this, you can use mini chocolate chips or melt the chocolate in the microwave then spread it on top.
Substitutions
- Saltine crackers – Salted saltine crackers are best. You can use unsalted saltine crackers, but I would suggest sprinkling some salt on top to balance the sweetness. You can substitute with Ritz crackers or even graham crackers (add salt) if you wish.
- Brown sugar – You can use light or dark brown sugar. I personally prefer dark for more flavor.
- Butter – You can use salted or unsalted butter. You can also use vegan butter sticks like Earth Balance, Miyoko’s, or Country Crock’s avocado plant butter sticks.
- Chocolate – I like to use milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips. You can use dark chocolate chips, but I wouldn’t go any higher than 60% cacao or it might separate from the saltine toffee layer.
- Toppings – Christmas crack is great on its own, but I usually do add additional toppings like chopped nuts, candy, or sprinkles. Some of my favorite toppings are chopped pecans, shredded coconut, crushed candy canes, and festive sprinkles.
How long can you store Christmas Crack?
You can store the cracker candy in an airtight container for up to 5 days at room temperature or 2 weeks in the fridge. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months.
You might also like:
- White Chocolate Christmas Crack
- Chocolate Dipped Rice Krispie Treats
- Glazed Maple Shortbread Cookies
- Whipped Shortbread Cookies
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Make sure you add this irresistible saltine cracker toffee to your holiday dessert tray and share in the happiness that a good treat can bring.
Did you make this recipe? Please kindly leave a comment with your star rating below.
PrintBest Ever Christmas Crack
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 15 min
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: about 40 pieces
- Category: dessert
- Method: bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
This cracker candy is crispy and chocolaty with a sweet buttery toffee finish.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (227g) unsalted or salted butter
- 1 cup (220g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 40 salted saltine crackers (about 1 sleeve)
- 1 pkg (270g-300g) milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips
- additional toppings like nuts, candy or sprinkles (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line a large baking sheet with heavy duty aluminum foil (if using regular foil, spray with non-stick cooking spray for easy removal). Spread the crackers out on the foil in a single layer and fold up the edges of the foil to box in the crackers. Set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar over medium heat on the stovetop. Bring to a rolling boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to boil for 5 minutes (set a timer), stirring frequently. Quickly pour over the crackers and spread to cover completely.
- Bake for 5 minutes in the oven. Turn off heat. Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle the chocolate chips on top.
- Let stand for 1-2 minutes or until the chocolate starts to look shiny and is soft enough spread evenly over the toffee. If the chocolate is still not warm enough to spread after 4 minutes, place it back in the oven for a minute to help soften it.
- Top with any additional toppings if desired.
- Chill in the refrigerator for about 2 hours to harden. Peel away the foil and break into pieces.
Notes
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container and stored at room temperature for up to 5 days or 2 weeks in the fridge. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months.
Expert tips:
- Pan size – A 10×15″ jelly roll pan works best for this recipe. However, any type of baking sheet this size or larger will work. My pan is actually 11×17″ so I just fold up the edges of the foil to keep the crackers in place and prevent the toffee from spilling out onto the pan.
- Lining the pan – Heavy-duty foil works best because it’s easy to peel away. You can use regular foil – just lightly coat with non-stick cooking spray to make it easy to remove. You can also use parchment paper. There is no greasing required if you’re using parchment paper, but just make sure to completely cover the bottom and sides of the pan.
- Cooking the toffee. Once the butter and brown sugar reaches a boil, set a timer, and let it boil for 5 minutes. You want it to be a rolling boil to evaporate some of the moisture, so it becomes like caramel.
- Baking the cracker candy. Bake the saltine toffee in a 350F oven for a minimum of 5 minutes or until bubbling so that the toffee reaches its second boiling point and absorbs into the crackers.
- Melting the chocolate chips. As soon as you remove the tray from the oven, immediately sprinkle the chocolate chips on top. The bubbling toffee should be hot enough to melt the chocolate. Once about half the chocolate chips look shiny, you can start spreading the chocolate to cover the saltine toffee. If you have trouble with this, you can use mini chocolate chips or melt the chocolate in the microwave then spread it on top.
This post was originally published on Dec 2nd, 2016. It has been recently updated with new photos and more information.
This looks amazing and i cant wait to try it! One question, can the caramel be made with white sugar if i dont have brown sugar handy?
Yes, and I’ve seen other recipes use white sugar, so if that’s what you have on hand, go ahead and use it. Enjoy and happy holidays!
Wow! This looks really good. Certainly a fun treat! Perfect for this Christmas season.
This was delicious!!! Â We loved it, and so easy to make!
A really GOOD topping is
SKOR Bits!!!!
Awesome instructions .. easy to follow ..and taste  wonderfulÂ
On one of your pictures (the second one) you see a lot of the cracker left but it doesn’t look like that in the other pictures. It looks like the toffee didn’t seep through the cracker enough. That is what mine looks like. I made sure to measure properly. What did I do wrong or what do I have to do to make sure it will seep through the cracker more?
The toffee doesn’t seep through the crackers exactly. It more like coats the crackers. In the second picture, those pieces were cut with a knife instead of broken by hand so you see a better cross-section and more of the crackers in the candy. Did you bake them in the oven for 5 minutes and was it bubbling when you took it out?
I make this every Christmas season and I use peppermint candy bars on top instead of the chocolate and it always turns out fantastic. The bars are thicker but a minute in the oven melts them perfectly. Great recipe and thank you.
Thank you for this delicious recipe. Is it ok to cool this at room temperature instead of putting it in the refrigerator? Sometimes I have a problem of the chocolate getting little white spots. Thank you!
You’re welcome and yes, you can cool it at room temperature. Enjoy and happy holidays!
Made this for my Christmas party at work…everyone loved it!!
These instructions and tips are extremely helpful and couldn’t be easier. Just for others who may be wondering, although vegan butter is not recommended by the author, I am vegan and this is my only option. I used Country Crock avocado oil buttery sticks and the recipe turned out perfect. My local Wegmans semisweet chocolate chips are vegan, too. Great holiday treat and definitely addictive.
That’s great to know, Denise! Thanks so much for sharing your success with this recipe using vegan butter!
@Denise – thank you soooo much for posting about the vegan/plant based butter. I too am vegan and really wanted to try this. I hope the author updates her recipe to reflect that vegan butter does in fact work – I also used the country crock avocado oil butter sticks😉
Oh… my… gosh….this is definitely crack!!!!  Easy breezy and it’s done!!! And loved by everyoneÂ
A few other recipes say not to use Nestlé toll house chips because the have a added ingredient so they hold there shape and are harder to melt just FYI
Good to know. Thanks for sharing, Lisa!
Bull, Nestle melt just fine. the regular ones and the mini.
Love it so deliciousÂ
You can not just have one piece  it’s so addicting just stick to the receipe I tried doubling the Carmel and doubling the chocolate and yeah it was good but simple is best!!  So easy and I will only make it at Christmas time cause I can’t keep up with the requests merry Christmas to all enjoy the crack!!Â
So easy
Amazing addictive
After reading the many reviews, it seems many people are having a difficult time with melting the chips. Why can’t they be melted in the microwave or stove top and poured over the cracker mixture? It seems this would be a far easy solution.
I do mention that you can melt the chocolate chips in the microwave if you prefer in the expert tips and notes section. However, for most, it can be melted on top of the hot toffee without the extra step of melting it in the microwave or stovetop. I hope that helps clarify things:)
Just put it back in the oven for a minute and then spread chocolateÂ
if you use real chocolate and not those awful compound ‘chips’ (which are full of nasty additives) it’ll melt perfectly.
Love this recipe. I made it once and it was perfect.. This time the toffee turned darker and I am worried it will taste burnt. It did not bubble in the oven like last time. I thought I did it the same way. I hope it turns out as it is for xams gifts
I hope so too. Let me know how it turns out.
If you are a lover of ALMOND ROCA, you will become ” addicted” to this true confection. One could hardly imagine this decadent treat could be made with so few ingredients including SALTINE???? Be prepared for RAVE reviews, and multiple requests for the recipe!
Thank you for your rave review, Lynn! ‘Tis the season for Christmas candy!
Love it so easy