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Home » Recipe » Candy » Cracker Candy

Cracker Candy

Published October 22, 2021 Last modified October 22, 2021 By Beth Mueller

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Easy, addictive cracker candy recipe made with saltine crackers covered in a crispy toffee coating.  No thermometer needed for this holiday favorite!  Don’t be fooled, this quick snack is great all year long!

Cracker candy pieces stacked on a wooden block with Christmas sprinkles

I’ve been making this super simple homemade candy made with saltine crackers surrounded by toffee and covered in chocolate and optional nuts 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. This sweet holiday treat is also known as Christmas Crack!

INGREDIENTS 

The ingredients for this recipe are so common you probably have all of them in your kitchen already!  You just need about 1 sleeve of salted top saltine crackers, 2 sticks [1 cup] of butter, and 1 cup of brown sugar.

If you want to add chocolate to the top you can use chocolate candy bars or chocolate chips.  I have used both and my favorite is milk chocolate chips.

Chocolate chips melt quicker so I can smooth it out and get on to other tasks.

Milk chocolate tastes more like regular toffee, but if semi-sweet is what you have on hand, go ahead and use them.  White chocolate can also be used and looks really great when covered with some holiday sprinkles.

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.

Instructions

Heat an oven to 400⁰F.

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.

Saltine crackers in a foil lined baking sheet

Lay the crackers in the pan side by side, trying not to overlap the crackers, [if your crackers require more than one sleeve go ahead and use more].  This will make it so much easier to break into ice pieces later.

Cook the butter [1 cups] and brown sugar [1 cup] in a pan over medium-high heat until boiling.  Boil for an additional 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and very carefully pour over the crackers.

If there are some crackers without any sauce, poke them down into the mixture with a fork, be careful though, that melted sugar is super-hot!

Crackers and toffee sauce in a foil lined pan

Baking

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.  Ask me how I know it smokes on the oven floor…….

Bake the crackers for 6 minutes.  Do not overbake, burnt toffee crackers are kind of nasty.  Yes, I have taste tested them! Just say no to burnt crack candy.

Baked toffee crackers in a pan with foil

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.

melted chocolate chips being spread over hot Christmas crack with an offset spatula

Add the chocolate to the top of the hot crackers 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.

chocolate smoothed over toffee candy in a pan

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.

nuts covering chocolate topped toffee crackers

Allow the toffee to cool completely before breaking apart.

TOPPING IDEAS

White Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, or my personal favorite, milk chocolate

Holiday shaped sprinkles like snowflakes, Christmas trees, gingerbread men, or even colored jimmies

M&Ms – use holiday colors to match the season

STORING

Cracker candy will last about 1 week before it’s no longer crispy and the toffee starts to turn grainy and chewy.  It will be edible, just won’t taste as good as when it is less than 2 weeks old.

This candy makes great Christmas and hostess gifts.  Break the candy into cracker size pieces and place into cellophane bags and seal for gift giving.  To store cracker candy without giving it as gifts, just place it into plastic baggies at room temperature.

MORE HOLIDAY TREAT RECIPES YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS

German Almond Cookies

Peppermint Bark

Sprinkle Cookies

Cut-Out Sugar Cookies 

Stack of cracker candy pieces

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Toffee Cracker Candy stacked on a block

Cracker Candy Recipe

Addictive cracker candy recipe made with saltine crackers covered in a crispy toffee coating. 
5 from 3 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Candy
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 35 Servings
Calories: 120kcal
Author: Beth Mueller
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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 [35 crackers], trying not to overlap the crackers, and set aside near the stove.
  • Place butter [1 cup] and light brown sugar [1 cup] 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. Allow the chocolate to completely melt before spreading the chocolate.
  • While the chocolate is still wet, top with crushed nuts or sprinkles.
  • Allow the cracker toffee to cool completely before breaking or cutting into pieces.
  • Store the cracker candy in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Notes

Nutritional data includes optional chocolate and nuts.
♦ Don’t forget to rate the recipe!

Nutrition

Serving: 1cracker | Calories: 120kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 82mg | Potassium: 22mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 174IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg
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Filed Under: Beginner Recipes, Candy, Holiday Entertaining, Recipe, Snacks and Tailgate Favorites

About Beth Mueller

Hi! Thanks for visiting Pear Tree Kitchen! I've been cooking and creating recipes for over 40 years. I'm an RN so I tend to go overboard with food safety tips! My favorite things are chicken soup, desserts, and sharing recipes.

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