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!
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?
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.
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.
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.
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.
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!
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!
Saltine Cracker Candy
Ingredients
- 1 ½ sleeves salted saltine crackers about 45 crackers
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted 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) unsalted butter, 1 cup (200 g) brown sugar
- Allow mixture to come to a boil and allow it to boil for three minutes -- do not stir while it boils.
- 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.
- ²Remove from oven (turn off the oven) and evenly sprinkle chocolate chips over toffee. Return to 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.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
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.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
This Saltine Toffee recipe was originally published 12/05/2016, post updated to include more tips and a video on 12/07/2018
Jodi Winebrenner
Can you use unsalted crackers? I have had to cut out most salt from my diet.
Sam
Hi, Jodi! It will still work, there just won’t be as much flavor in the candy.
REBECCA
Thank you so much for your delicious recipe. So easy to make and family absolutely loved them and most importantly I loved it ( so hard to put down).
Sam
I know that feeling, you aren’t alone! 😂I am so glad everyone enjoyed it.
Alice Webb
This stuff is heavenly!! But when I make it the Toffee stays gummy what did I do wrong?
Sam
The toffee may have needed to boil just a little bit longer. The humidity in the air could also present an issue if it is too humid where you are baking. Hope that helps. 🙂
Brenda Barrs
I precooked some chopped bacon and sprinkled over before putting back in oven and also added a little cayenne pepper, not much though and was delicious 😋
Sam
Ooo I haven’t tried that before. It sounds interesting! 🙂
Dorothy
I just made this for the first time but when I put it in the fridge to harden then took it out to crack everything got all mushy-what did I do wrong?
Sam
If the toffee didn’t harden (which I’m guessing is the problem if it got mushy) it sounds like it wasn’t cooked properly. It may have needed a little bit longer on the stovetop.
Dorothy Horan
OK I will cook the toffee longer next time – Thanks
April
Has anyone made this with dark chocolate chips?
Sam
I have! If you like dark chocolate you will love the combo 🙂 Enjoy!
Sharon
Very easy to make and yummy to eat!!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it! ☺️
Annalise S
My boyfriend’s sister is a professional baker. How do I compete with that when we have family dinners? (cue laughter)
I do bring this over. It’s super simple to make, a hit with all ages, and I always make individual packages for everyone to take home- or else I’d eat it all!
LOVE that a candy thermometer is not needed.
Sam
Haha I’m so glad that this was a hit, I also love that a thermometer is not needed, makes everything so much easier!! 🙂
Mary
Love it! Made it twice now, and have added a small amount of cayenne pepper to add a bit of a kick. Family favorite!
Will be taking it to the office tomorrow and we’ll see how it holds up.
Thanks for the great recipe.
Sam
YUM, never tried it with cayenne but now I have to!
Lara
I love sweet & spicy and/or spicy chocolate so that sounds wonderful. Did you put the cayenne in the caramel mix, or sprinkle it over the chocolate? A rough idea on how much you used to would be great too.
Kathy
We always called it poor mans toffee. Good stuff!
Sam
Love that name!!
Ang
Is the caramel hard or soft when it cools?
Sam
It will harden
Cheryl
Thanks for this recipe! The instructions were very easy to follow and these turned out great! I might actually make them again immediately because I know these will be eaten in 2 seconds.
Megan @ MegUnprocessed
These bars look wonderful, what a great treat!!
Joanne
I can’t believe I have never made cracker candy, yet it is so easy to make!
Thanks for the awesome giveaway, too!
Sam
You really have to try it, it’s always such a hit whenever I make it! I can’t take too much credit for the giveaway — it is all really thanks to Holly from spendwithpennies.com — isn’t it so generous of her!? 🙂
Crystal
I tried this today but the choc didn’t melt enough to spread I put it back in the oven for just a minute and it kinda burnt the chocolate
Sandra
Turn the oven off after you take the crackers out after setting the toffee. There will be enough residual heat to melt the chocolate chips and shouldn’t burn the chocolate.
M. Hulit
I had to throw it out. I have a brand new stove, so I know the temp was right. The chocolate chips were Ghirardelli and they did NOT melt no matter what. waste of $$ and time of which I had neither to waste.
Sam
How long did you let it preheat? Just because the stove is new doesn’t mean the temp is accurate, my brand new stove was 15F off, and it takes about 20 minutes to preheat to the proper temperature. Could it have not been preheated properly? Or could you have left the door open too long when you took the toffee out the first time and could too much heat have escaped? I’ve made this with Ghirardelli without issue. But even if the chips didn’t spread, it still would’ve been perfectly edible! sorry to hear you had to throw it out.
Melissa
Why would you throw it out because the chocolate did not melt!? It hardens anyway and is still just as good either way!
I made this only with almonds because they were all I had, and it came out perfect and no problem melting the chocolate but it wouldn’t have mattered to me anyway even if they didn’t.
Lisa
Been making this for years, love this recipe <3
Sam
It’s definitely a keeper!
Suzanne D
Can anyone tell me why the chocolate chips didn’t melt to a consistency where they were spreadable?
:/
Sam
Hi Suzanne! Did you return them to the oven for an additional 2 minutes and were they still not spreadable? Did you use generic chocolate chips?