Saltine Cracker Toffee

Festive Saltine Cracker Toffee is the perfect sweet-salty treat! Calling for just four ingredients and whatever toppings you see fit, this easy cracker toffee recipe is perfect for sharing. Makes 24-36 servings.

A plate of Christmas Cracker Toffee with peppermint and nuts

Today’s the day—it’s Freaky Friday 2021 Holiday Cookie Exchange 2021! And I’m thrilled to be sharing a recipe from Jill of The Carefree Kitchen!

I had my work cut out for me because Jill offers so many recipes on her site that sounds scrumptious!

Hi, hello. Check out her Pretzel Toffee and Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies as holiday treats. And her Holiday Punch recipe? Swoon!

Why we love this recipe:

I love, love, love this Saltine Cracker Toffee recipe because it’s simple, it’s festive and it’s the perfect kind of sweet to add to a cookie tray this holiday season.

Saltine Cracker Toffee is also the perfect balance of sweet and salty, and it’s really hard to stop eating once you start. So you’ve been warned officially.

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    Also…

    • It’s quick to make! I was able to make this in less than 30 minutes. The longest piece of time is the cooling period.
    • You can customize it to your tastebuds! Jill’s recipe uses milk chocolate, while I used bittersweet chocolate chips in mine. You do you.
    • You can change up the toppings to your taste, too. Jill’s original recipe just calls for nuts, while I added peppermint crunch and sprinkles to parts of mine because, well, it’s the holiday season, and I wanted to add some pops of festiveness to inspire y’all to do the same. (You could also make these for different holidays!)
    • These would be fun to decorate with kids, though you’ll need to keep a close eye on them depending on their ages and kitchen skills since this does go in the oven and gets pretty hot.

    Basically—there’s a ton to love about this easy dessert recipe…

    Other easy and festive desserts to try this season: Dessert Nachos (Halloween, Christmas, Easter Candy Leftover idea!) | No Bake Scotcheroo Cookies | Snickerdoodle Bars | Cheesecake Dip | Chex Mix Puppy Chow | Easy Rum Balls Recipe

    Need holiday treat inspiration? Check out my Christmas recipe index for some ideas!

    A Christmas cookie tray holding peppermint saltine cracker toffee and cookies

    Let me tell you about Jill and The Carefree Kitchen

    Jill is the content creator behind The Carefree Kitchen. She and her family (which includes FIVE kid) love in Idaho.

    She’s always loved being in the kitchen and is thrilled that she’s turned her passion into a business. As a child, she had perfected several desserts before she was 10, and she started a bread and cinnamon roll business, where she sold her baked goods to repeat customers.

    Jill started The Carefree Kitchen after she helped two of her daughters start their own YouTube channel. While her daughters eventually wanted a break, she felt like she was just getting started. As she says, “It clicked one day while daydreaming in the kitchen, so I started a Youtube channel, a few social media accounts and a simple website that has grown to become The Carefree Kitchen.”

    Isn’t that cool?!?

    When I was assigned Jill’s site, I knew I had my work cut out for me because she offers so many different recipes. She’s all about sharing her love for food and helping her readers find easy solutions for all their family’s meals and delicious treats.

    As a harried mama of two, this resonated with me, and I quickly perused her dessert section because this is, after all, the Holiday Cookie Exchange!

    I ended up choosing this Saltine Cracker Toffee recipe, but I was sorely tempted by her Soft Gingersnap Cookies and her Gingerbread Men Cookies for this collaboration specifically.

    I mean… check out her Dessert Recipe Index and just drool with me, mmkay?

    So… What Is Freaky Friday?

    It’s a blog hop, which is a collaboration between bloggers where everyone involved posts on the same day and links to one another. It’s a fun way to connect with other people who are doing this same work as me, as well as a fun way to introduce our readers to new bloggers. 

    Michaela from An Affair from the Heart, the lovely lady who founded this quarterly collaboration, secretly assigns everyone another blogger, who we will choose and make a recipe from.

    We make their recipe, photograph it as if it were our own, write a post about it with our own personal anecdote and then share our posts on the same Friday.

    We hope that this collaboration helps you discover some amazing new recipes, as well as find new bloggers to follow!

    For previous Freaky Friday exchanges, I’ve made a lot of things. Here are a few desserts I’ve baked throughout the years:

    Check out all of our 2021 Freaky Friday Holiday Cookie Exchange Recipes:

  • An Affair from the Heart – Candy Cane Puppy Chow
  • The Carefree Kitchen – Christmas Linzer Cookies
  • Devour Dinner – Peppermint Meltaways
  • Family Around the Table – Chocolate Overload Cookies
  • The Foodie Affair – Easy Pecan Pie Crust Cookie Recipe
  • Fresh April Flours – Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies
  • The Fresh Cooky – White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
  • Hostess at Heart – Crumbl Cookie Recipe
  • House of Nash Eats – Peppermint Chocolate Chip Cookies
  • Kathryn’s Kitchen Blog – Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
  • Lemoine Family Kitchen – Lemon Thumbprint Cookies with Strawberry Jam
  • Lemon Blossoms – Cranberry Orange Biscotti
  • Life Currents – Chocolate Mint Rugelach
  • Life, Love & Good Food – White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
  • Soulfully Made – Polar Bear Paw Cookies
  • Sue Bee Homemaker – Jam Thumbprint Cookies
  • Take Two Tapas – Sugar Cookie Truffles
  • Ingredients to make saltine cracker toffee on marble

    What you’ll need to make this recipe

    The Speckled Palate participates in affiliate programs. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying purchases. Please refer to my disclosure page for more information about these affiliate programs.

    In addition to these tools, you’ll need a handful of ingredients.

    • Saltine crackers—these are the base of our toffee. You’re going to need a sleeve and a half, or enough to lay in an even layer of a baking sheet.
    • Unsalted butter
    • Light brown sugar—you could swap this with dark brown sugar if that’s what you have in your house, too.
    • Bittersweet chocolate chips—I wanted a sweeter chocolate for this recipe. However, you could use the same amount of dark chocolate chips, semisweet chocolate chips or even milk chocolate chips, depending on your tastebuds.
    • Toppings—I used chopped pecans, confetti sprinkles (sometimes called quins) and peppermint crunch

    Substitutions for this recipe:

    Look, I’m not one to make a ton of substitutions in recipes, but if you want to switch things up, here are some ideas:

    • Chocolate: Jill’s original recipe uses milk chocolate chips, and she suggests in her post that you can use dark chocolate, white chocolate, peanut butter, butterscotch or any other type that you like. I used bittersweet chocolate here.
    • Toppings: Jill suggests usingpecans, walnuts and almonds because those are her family’s favorite. I used pecans, but I also made two additional sections of my baking sheet and added confetti sprinkles and peppermint crunch for some Christmas festiveness.
    • Crackers: Substitute the same amount of Ritz crackers or Graham crackers to make this recipe for a slightly different flavor!
    A collage showing how to make the toffee and it on the saltines

    How to make Saltine Cracker Toffee

    Measure out your ingredients. This will make the process go more quickly.

    Preheat the oven. It’s gotta be hot for us to bake this cracker toffee, no matter how short it bakes.

    Butter a rimmed sheet pan. I used one of the used butter packages to rub down my sheet pan, and it worked like a charm. You could also spritz it with cooking spray.

    Layer on the crackers into the prepared sheet pan. Make sure they’re in an even layer.

    Boil the butter and brown sugar. Measure them into a small saucepan, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil for 3 minutes, whisking constantly, then pour over the saltine crackers. Try to pour on evenly because we want this to reach all the parts of the saltine crackers before they bake.

    Bake. I placed mine on the middle rack of my oven, and baked for 5 minutes. They’ll be nice and bubbly and hot, hot, hot when they come out of the oven, so prepare for this.

    A collage of two image showing sprinkling and spreading of melted chocolate chips

    Add the chocolate chips. Sprinkle an even layer of chocolate on top of the saltine, and let them melt. Use an offset spatula to spread the chocolate in an even layer.

    Add the toppings. I divided my sheet pan into roughly three parts and sprinkled on three separate toppings in rows.

    Let cool. This is the part of the process that takes the most time! Let it sit on the counter for a while until the sheet pan has cooled.

    Transfer the cooled baking sheet into the fridge or freezer. Depending on your chocolate, this could take upwards of 1-2 hours. Be patient because if it’s not solid, you’ll end up with gooey toffee.

    Cut into pieces, and enjoy!

    A collage of two images showing the toffee before and after toppings are added

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Does Christmas crack need to be refrigerated?

    Yes. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

    Can I freeze saltine toffee?

    Wrap the cracker toffee well in plastic wrap, then place it in a freezer-safe airtight container and freeze for up to a month.

    What can I substitute for saltine crackers?

    You can use Ritz crackers or another flat type of cracker, like butter crackers in this recipe.

    A tin of peppermint saltine cracker toffee by a christmas platter

    Quick tips and tricks for making this Christmas dessert

    • Double or triple the recipe! If you want to make enough for the whole neighborhood, consider making a few batches of this goodness. It’s easy to make and even easier to share!
    • Switch up the flavors and toppings. Use your favorite type of chocolate chip (or use butterscotch or peanut butter chips!). Swap out different nuts for the pecans. Throw on crushed candy canes, peppermint crunch baking chips or sprinkles for color.
    • Speed up the cooling time by throwing the sheet pan into the freezer (if you have room.)
    • How to store leftovers: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks!
    • How to freeze leftovers: If you want to make a batch of this goodness and freeze it for later, that’s awesome. Simply wrap the cracker toffee well in plastic wrap, then place it in a freezer-safe airtight container and freeze for up to a month.
    A platter of three different types of saltine cracker toffee with nuts, sprinkles and peppermint
    A Christmas cookie tray holding peppermint saltine cracker toffee and cookies

    Saltine Cracker Toffee

    Erin Parker, The Speckled Palate
    Festive Saltine Cracker Toffee is the perfect sweet-salty treat! Calling for just four ingredients and whatever toppings you see fit, this easy cracker toffee recipe is perfect for sharing.
    4.88 from 8 votes
    Servings 24 servings
    Calories 269 kcal
    Prep Time 10 minutes
    Cook Time 10 minutes
    Total Time 20 minutes

    Ingredients
      

    • 1 ½ sleeves Saltine Crackers 158g
    • 1 ¼ cups unsalted butter 280g
    • 1 cup light brown sugar lightly packed (155g)
    • 12 oz. bittersweet chocolate chips

    Topping Ideas

    As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Instructions
     

    • Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 11” x 16” rimmed sheet pan. (You can use the empty butter packages from the butter in this recipe. You may also spritz it with your favorite baking spray.)
    • Arrange the crackers in an even layer on the bottom of the prepared sheet pan.
    • Measure the butter and brown sugar into a sauce pan. Heat over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil. Boil for 2-3 minutes while whisking constantly.
    • Pour the hot brown sugar mixture over the crackers. Try to pour it into an even layer so every cracker has some of this on it.
    • Bake the crackers in the preheated oven for 5 minutes.
    • Once done, remove the crackers from the oven. (Careful, they’re HOT!)
    • Sprinkle the chocolate chips in an even layer on top of the hot crackers.
    • Let the hot crackers melt the chocolate, then spread with an offset spatula into an even layer.
    • Top with your favorite toppings — I’ve used three separate toppings with chopped pecans, red and green sprinkles and Peppermint Crunch.
    • Let cool completely until solid in the refrigerator or the freezer. (This will take 1-2 hours.)
    • Once solidified, cut into pieces, and enjoy.

    Notes

    This original recipe is from Jill at The Carefree Kitchen. I modified it very slightly.
    How to store leftovers: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks!
    How to freeze leftovers: If you want to make a batch of this goodness and freeze it for later, that’s awesome. Simply wrap the cracker toffee well in plastic wrap, then place it in a freezer-safe airtight container and freeze for up to a month.
    Want to make a substitution? Here’s what I recommend:
    • Chocolate: Jill’s original recipe uses milk chocolate chips, and she suggests in her post that you can use dark chocolate, white chocolate, peanut butter, butterscotch or any other type that you like. I used semisweet chocolate here.
      Toppings: Jill suggests using pecans, walnuts and almonds because those are her family’s favorite. I used pecans, but I also made two additional sections of my baking sheet and added confetti sprinkles and peppermint crunch for some Christmas festiveness.
      Crackers: Substitute the same amount of Ritz crackers or Graham crackers to make this recipe for a slightly different flavor!

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1 servingCalories: 269kcalCarbohydrates: 16gProtein: 3gFat: 22gSaturated Fat: 11gPolyunsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 26mgSodium: 21mgFiber: 3gSugar: 10g
    Keyword Christmas dessert, crackers, dessert, saltine cracker toffee, toffee, treat
    Course Desserts & Sweet Treats
    Cuisine American
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
    A woman with dark curly hair wearing a black tank top in front of a white wall

    About the Author:

    Erin Parker is a Southern gal living in Texas with her husband and two daughters. She started The Speckled Palate to share what she was cooking as a newlywed… and over the years, it’s evolved to capture her love for hosting. Specifically, the EASIEST, lowest key entertaining because everyone deserves to see their people and connect over good food. Learn more about her

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    18 Comments

    1. I LOVE that you used the peppermint on top!! I am totally trying these! What a perfectly pretty and tasty treat to add to my holiday trays this year! Merry Christmas to you and your family, Erin!

      1. Thanks, Michaela! It felt like a fun and festive spin on this classic dessert for me. 🙂 I hope you enjoy them as much as we did!

        Merry Christmas to you and yours, Michaela!

      1. Thanks, Sheila! In this household (which includes two little girls), we’re allllllll about sprinkles and festive toppings. 😉 These did not last long in ours, haha.

    2. I’m so glad you chose this recipe! It really is a holiday classic! I love all your recipe variations and thanks so much for the love! I can’t wait till we can meet in real life!

    3. So first, one of my favorite “cheater” recipes ever, always amazed at how it really tastes like toffee, 2nd love that you used a variety of toppings! It gives it such a variety — and I am always about options!

    4. Oh! I’ve never had a cracker toffee but it sounds amazing and I need to try this recipe asap!! Beautiful photos!

    5. I just loved how you made three varieties on one pan so I copied your idea and now my cookie platter looks so impressive.

    6. This is always a favorite on cookie plates but I have never thought to use Andes peppermint chips on it! It was a big hit with everybody at the cookie exchange I took it to last night!

    4.88 from 8 votes (3 ratings without comment)

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