4.85 from 97 votes

Saltine Cracker Candy

Name: Saltine Cracker Candy
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 1 ½ sleeves salted saltine crackers (about 45 crackers); 1 cup salted butter; 1 cup brown sugar (tightly packed ); 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips¹; ½ cup chopped pecans (or other topping); flaky sea salt for sprinkling (optional)

By Sam MerrittPublished Dec 07, 2018

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265 Comments

Servings: 24 pieces

15 mins

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Saltine Cracker Candy. Toffee Bark. Crack Candy. Christmas Crack. Saltine Toffee. This salty/sweet treat goes by many aliases. Whatever you call it, today’s recipe is the easiest candy I’ve shared yet. Just 5 simple ingredients, under 15 minutes to prepare, and no candy thermometer required.

If this recipe looks familiar to you, it’s because I originally shared it over 2 years ago and it’s been one of the most popular holiday recipes on my blog ever since. Today I’ve added a video and some helpful tips to the recipe. If you haven’t tried it yet, here’s your chance!

Stack of saltine cracker candy pieces on a plate

Another day in our week of candy! Just two more to go! As promised, today I’m giving you a break from the candy thermometer with this easy Saltine cracker candy (or whichever of its many monikers you prefer to use).

So far we’ve made our way through a classic Toffee recipe, Honeycomb, a snappy Peanut Brittle, and a smooth and creamy Peanut Butter Fudge. Which one are you trying first?

For those of you who don’t have a candy thermometer, this Saltine Cracker Candy might be your preferred choice. It’s been a favorite in my house ever since a friend introduced me to it years ago. We make it all year, but it’s especially popular around the holidays.

Let’s walk through this process in way more pictures than you probably really need, shall we?

Caramel sauce poured onto saltine crackers in baking sheet

How to Make Saltine Cracker Candy

The trickiest part of this whole candy-making business is preparing the toffee. Look at that sweet, caramel-colored, bubbling beauty.

The toffee is made with just two ingredients: butter and brown sugar. Melt the two together on the stovetop and allow it to come to a boil.

Do not, under any circumstances, disturb this toffee while it is working its magic during the boiling process. This was a hard lesson for me to learn, I always tend to worry about my sauces burning so if your natural inclination is to toss in a few stirs or scrape the sides, just don’t. The toffee knows what it’s doing.

Let it boil for 3 minutes (use a timer), and then immediately pour/ spread it over your crackers.

Wooden spatula spreading caramel mixture over saltine crackers

After you’ve doused your saltine crackers with toffee, bake them in the oven at a high temp for a few minutes until that golden toffee blanket becomes nice and bubbly.

Don’t panic if some of them look like they’re trying to float away — it’s OK to have some space between your crackers, just let them do their thing.

Caramel mix on top of saltine crackers in a baking sheet

Now my favorite part.

Sprinkle your toffee layer with plenty of chocolate chips and return them to the oven for just two more minutes. This makes the chips nice and melt-y and easy to spread.

I know that some people make saltine cracker candy without chocolate (and you can certainly skip the chocolate, if that’s your preference), but that doesn’t fly in my house.

Chocolate chips melting on top of saltine cracker candy

Metal spatula spreading melted chocolate chips

When I used to make Saltine Cracker Candy in the past, I never added any topping on top of the chocolate. Recently I’ve been using chopped pecans, but you can use pretty much any topping you’d like. Walnuts, peanuts, homemade sprinkles, candy pieces, pretty much anything goes well with saltine cracker candy.

If you’re one of those people I mentioned above and are trying to make this without chocolate, just skip this step and sprinkle any toppings you’d like to use directly on the toffee as soon as it comes out of the oven.

Cup of chopped pecans

Saltine cracker candy in baking sheet

Since the chocolate topping is made with melted chocolate chips, it would take a while to set at room temperature, so I usually slide it into the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Then remove it and break (or cut) into pieces. They don’t cut very evenly but the jagged pieces are all part of its rustic character 😉

Saltine cracker candy doesn’t have to stay refrigerated, but because the chocolate can melt in your hands pretty quickly I personally prefer to keep it chilled in the fridge.

Personal preference!

Saltine cracker candy

Enjoy!

More Candy Recipes You May Enjoy

Potato Candy
Chocolate Fudge
Peppermint Bark Fudge (no candy thermometer)

Have you made any of my candy recipes so far? Be sure to tag me on Instagram or share a picture over in my free Baker’s Club on Facebook!

4.85 from 97 votes

Saltine Cracker Candy

Whether you call it Christmas Crack, Saltine Toffee, Toffee Cracker Candy, Crack Candy, or just Saltine Cracker Candy, this easy, snappy dessert is sure to be a hit this holiday season.

Be sure to check out the how-to VIDEO below!

Prep: 10

Cook: 5

Setting Time: 1

Total: 15

Servings: pieces

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Equipment

Ingredients

▢ 1 ½ sleeves salted saltine crackers, about 45 crackers
▢ 1 cup (226 g) salted butter
▢ 1 cup (200 g) brown sugar, tightly packed
▢ 2 cups (350 g) semisweet chocolate chips¹
▢ ½ cup (50 g) chopped pecans, or other topping
▢ flaky sea salt for sprinkling, optional

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400F (205C) and line a standard-sized cookie sheet with foil. Lightly spray with cooking spray or grease lightly with butter.
Layer crackers evenly over the foil (salted side up); it's alright if there are spaces between the crackers and not every edge is completely filled in.
1 ½ sleeves salted saltine crackers
Prepare your toffee by combining butter and brown sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
1 cup (226 g) salted butter, 1 cup (200 g) brown sugar
Allow mixture to come to a full rolling boil and allow it to boil for three minutes -- stir only occasionally/as needed to prevent burning.
Immediately remove from heat and pour over crackers (it's ok if some of them start to float, just try to keep them in an even layer), spread with a heatproof spatula to completely coat crackers.
Place in 400F (205C) oven for 5 minutes -- toffee will begin to bubble.
Remove from oven and turn off the oven. Evenly sprinkle chocolate chips over the hot toffee. Return tray to the oven for two minutes, then remove and use a spatula or knife to spread chocolate evenly over crackers.
2 cups (350 g) semisweet chocolate chips¹
Sprinkle evenly with chopped pecans (or preferred topping -- or no topping!) and a scant amount of flaky sea salt (if desired).
½ cup (50 g) chopped pecans, flaky sea salt for sprinkling
Allow to chill in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or until chocolate hardens. Cut into pieces using a large knife and serve.

Notes

¹I recommend using a quality chocolate chip, Ghirardelli is my preference. I used to use Nestle but they don't seem to melt properly in the oven any longer.

²Several people have commented that their chocolate chips did not melt or spread properly after going back in the oven. This may be due to the brand of chocolate chip or the chocolate being placed too close to the heating element in the oven. To avoid this, you can instead melt your chocolate chips in the microwave (heat in a microwave-safe bowl for 15 second increments, stirring well in between) and then pour and spread over your candy (no need to return to the oven).

Cleanup Tip!

Did the toffee harden to your saucepan, rendering it virtually impossible to clean? Fill it about halfway with water and return it to the stovetop. Bring the water to a boil and the toffee should melt away from the sides -- then just pour everything down the drain (scrape the sides while it's hot, if there's still some toffee stuck) and allow the pot to cool and clean as you would normally.