Christmas Crack Recipe (Cracker Candy)
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Christmas Crack is an easy and tasty crispy cracker candy made with saltine crackers covered in a crispy toffee coating. Traditionally topped with chocolate and nuts but can easily be made chocolate free.
Don’t let the name fool you, it’s not just for Christmas. It’s great all year long – just call it cracker candy in the off season! This is one of the simplest candy recipes I have in my arsenal, as it doesn’t require a candy thermometer!!
I’ve been making this super simple cracker toffee for the last 20 years or so. Luckily this recipe is easy and fairly quick to make because you’ll want to make extras, it’s hard to eat just one piece. There’s a reason this sweet holiday treat is also known as Christmas Crack!
Cracker Candy Ingredients
The ingredients for this recipe are so common you probably have all of them in your kitchen already!
Saltine crackers – I have used name brand and generic and have never noticed a difference. You can substitute saltines with graham crackers and even buttery crackers. Ritz crackers are round so you may need to break a few up to fill in any negative spaces or use rectangular club crackers.
Butter – As usual, I’m using salted butter. There is enough salt int his recipe that you can use unsalted butter without any other changes tot he recipe.
Brown Sugar – I use light brown sugar. If you like the deeper molasses flavors of dark brown sugar, you can use it without alterations.
Milk Chocolate – I use chocolate chips, they melt pretty quickly, and I prefer the Ghirardelli brand on my saltine toffee. You can easily substitute the these with white chocolate, dark chocolate, or semi-sweet chocolate. You can even make it without chocolate.
Nuts are optional, use your favorite. My personal favorite is called nut topping or dessert nut topping. It’s an assortment of nuts chopped into fairly uniform pieces.
How to Make Christmas Crack (Cracker Candy)
1 – Heat the oven to 400⁰F.
2 – Prepare a 10 X 15 baking sheet with sides by lining with aluminum foil and spray that with baking spray. You can also use non-stick aluminum foil; I prefer this type of foil but don’t always have it on hand. I tend to abuse it and use it for nearly everything up until I run out. Alternatively, parchment paper can be used, just make sure to press it into the corners as best you can.
3 – Lay the crackers in the pan in a single layer, place the crackers side by side trying not to overlap the crackers, if you need more than one sleeve of crackers, go ahead and use more.
4 – Cook the butter and brown sugar in a pan over medium-high heat until boiling. Boil for an additional 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and very carefully drizzle the brown sugar mixture over the crackers. If there are some crackers without any sauce, poke them down into the sugar mixture with a fork, be careful though, that melted sugar is super-hot!
Baking
5 – Place into the preheated 400°F oven. Don’t tip the pan or you will find yourself with melted sugar on your hands, the floor, or smoking on the bottom of the hot oven. Bake the crackers for 6 minutes. Do not overbake, burnt toffee crackers have an unpleasant flavor.
6 – Remove from the oven. The toffee will still be quite runny at this point, so be as careful removing them as you were putting them in. The sugar is even hotter now.
This is a great time to get every cracker covered with toffee. Using a fork, gently press them into the hot toffee, you could even use a pair of tongs to flip them. I rarely have to do either, but if you overlapped your crackers you might need to. Work quickly, the toffee will start to get thick as it cools.
7 – Top of the hot crackers with chocolate if using. Allow the chocolate to set for a few minutes until it is completely melted. Once the chocolate bars or chips are melted, use a knife or an off-set spatula to smooth it out.
8 – Optional nuts or sprinkles need to be added to the top of the chocolate while it is still melted and shiny so that they will stick.
9 – Allow the toffee to cool completely before breaking apart.
Pro Tips
Prepare the baking sheet and have the crackers layered in it before starting the sugar mixture. You don’t want to have any delays once the butter and sugar are cooked.
Using non-stick aluminum foil or parchment paper for easiest clean-up.
It is best to keep kids away from the candy once the hot butter and brown sugar mix is ready to be poured over the crackers. This is hot and will cause serious burns if it comes in contact with skin.
When making cracker candy without chocolate, it will look better if you have made sure that all of the crackers have the salted side facing the same way, up or down.
Allow the chocolate set to completely before attempting to break or store.
Topping Ideas
Holiday shaped sprinkles like snowflakes, Christmas trees, gingerbread men, or even colored jimmies are perfect for topping saltine toffee.
Additionally, M&Ms, crushed candy canes, diced walnuts or pecans, flaked coconut, or even an extra layer of flaky sea salt would be great chocolate toppers.
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Storing
Store your cracker toffee at room temperature in an airtight container. Use plastic wrap or parchment paper between layers to prevent sticking. This does not require refrigeration. I do not recommend storing in the freezer, it will not be crispy when it thaws.
Cracker candy will lose crispiness the longer it is stored. Try to eat this within one to two weeks for best quality.
This makes great Christmas and hostess gifts. Break the candy into cracker size pieces and place into cellophane bags or baggies and seal. Finish it off with curled ribbon or tying on a mini ornament for an adorable added touch.
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Cracker Candy Recipe
Ingredients
- 35 saltine crackers a little less than a full sleeve
- 1 cup salted butter
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips optional
- 1/2 cup crushed nuts optional
Instructions
- Preheat an oven to 400⁰F.
- Prepare a 10 X 15 baking pan by covering with non-stick aluminum foil and spray the foil with non-stick cooking spray.
- Line the baking pan with crackers, trying not to overlap the crackers, and set aside near the stove.
- Place butter and light brown sugar into a small saucepan and set heat to medium-high and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Continue to boil the mixture for 3 more minutes, stirring constantly.
- Remove from the heat and carefully pour the mixture evenly over the crackers. Spread the mixture if necessary. Use a fork to push any floating crackers under the toffee mixture.
- Carefully move the pan of crackers into the 400⁰F preheated oven and bake for 6 minutes. Do not overbake.
- Carefully remove the crackers from the oven and cover with chocolate chips if using.
- Once the chocolate has completely melted, spread it over the candy with a knife or the back of a spoon.
- While the chocolate is still warm, top with crushed nuts or sprinkles.
- Allow the cracker toffee to cool completely .
- One cooled, bread it into pieces.
- Store the cracker candy in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
- Ensure the baking sheet is ready with crackers before starting the sugar mixture. This prevents delays once the butter and sugar are cooked.
- Without Chocolate: For cracker candy without chocolate, ensure all crackers have the salted side facing the same direction for a consistent appearance.
- Use non-stick aluminum foil or parchment paper to line the baking pan, it’ll make cleanup effortless.
- Safety First: Keep kids away when pouring the hot butter and sugar mix and when removing the candy from the oven. It’s extremely hot and can cause serious skin burns.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and may vary based on exact ingredients used. For accuracy, consult a registered dietitian or nutritionist.
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This recipe was written and tested by a human.
Editor: Oliver Baysinger
Elizabeth (Beth) Mueller
Elizabeth (Beth) Mueller is a food journalist, CEO of Pear Tree Kitchen, and co-creator of Food Blogger Help. She also has a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and a registered nurse licensed in the State of Oklahoma. When she has free time between writing, blogging, and cooking, she can be found volunteering as an RN with the Oklahoma Medical Reserve Corps.
This is a great recipe to make in a hurry. Always a big hit!
Hi Dolores!
Thanks for visiting again! We’re glad you like it!
Believe it or not, at 66 years old this is my first time making this. It turned out DELICIOUS. Thank you for the recipe!
Hi Janet!
I’m glad you finally made it! It is one of the easiest holiday treat recipes in my arsenal!! Thanks for stopping by and leaving us a rating and sharing!
Happy Holidays!
Love this candy! It’s addicting.
Just as delicious as I remember! Used gluten free crackers and so yummy!
Hi Denise!
I’m so glad it was as you expected. Thanks for visiting and letting us know how it went and that it worked great with gluten free crackers!
Happy Holidays!
So good! Easy to make and fun to eat. Don’t worry about it only being good for two weeks… it won’t last that long! First time I made it I was home alone and no one else even got to taste it. I ate it all while reading a good mystery! Lol.
Love it, easy and makes a lot
Delicious…I added pecans to one half and broken candy canes on the other.
Hi Sandy!
Those are great ideas! I bet they turned out even better that way.
Happy Holidays!
So I misread “baking spray” in this recipe and used regular Pam cooking spray instead. The candy had an awful aftertaste and I had to throw it all away. What a bummer. My mistake but if I make it again I’m not taking any chances and just wiping the foil down with crisco.
Hi Meghan!
Pam is a baking spray and the one I use the most. I’ve never noticed an aftertaste before. I’ll be sure to be mindful next time I make it and see if I’ve just overlooked it.
Happy Holidays!
Question
I love this recipe!
However is the toffee layer supposed to be crunchy? Mine came out grainy
Hi Martha!
If any uncooked sugar granules get into your toffee it can turn grainy. A really humid day could be the blame. If it’s super humid, I would give the sugar an extra miute of boiling on the stove.
It helps if you make sure that there are no unmelted grains of brown sugar on the side of the pan, and your oven is running a true 400 Degrees F. The toffee should be bubbling while it is baking.
Hope this helps!
is there a trick to cutting these into perfect squares??
Hi Elishea!
I don’t really have a trick, I just remove the entire thing from the pan and then cut them with my largest knife, it has a 9-inch blade. I just press it through the candy from one end to the other on the shorter side, then I cut through those strips. Hope this helps!
Stay safe!
Just made a double batch of these and they are AWESOME!!
Very easy to make thanks for a great recipe.
Hi Melissa!
I’m so glad to hear you had success with it! It’s one of my favorite holiday food gifts!
Happy Holidays!
In #7 of this recipe, I believe that you mean to say “refully remove the crackers from the oven and COVER with chocolate chips if using. The use of the past tense of the word ‘cover’ makes the sentence unclear. Thank you!
Hi Kimberly!
Thanks for finding that and pointing it out. Nice eye for grammar! It’s been fixed.
Stay Safe!