Christmas Crack

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You’ll love this salty, sweet, crunchy, chewy saltine cracker candy, sometimes known as Christmas Crack, and you can make it in 15 minutes with just 5 ingredients!

A stack of Christmas Crack on a gray plate.


 

I grew up eating Saltine Cracker Candy every Christmas. We stored the candy, and all of our holiday goodies, on the patio outside (or in the garage if it was going to be REALLY cold that night). Everything went in leftover ice cream pails or plastic tubs.

My favorite thing to do was build the cookie plate for Christmas morning. I’d choose a few of each and pile them on the large glass Christmas plate, building a collection of the best offerings from my mom’s annual baking day.

Christmas Crack always went on top and it was always the first treat to disappear. To this day, the cookie plate remains my favorite holiday tradition.

Recipe ingredients

Labeled ingredients for Christmas Crack.

At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.

Ingredient notes

  • Chocolate: Sometimes chopped bar chocolate works better than chocolate chips. To melt the chocolate, you can either 1). melt it in the microwave and pour it over the top, or 2). sprinkle the chips on the hardened caramel topping, let them sit for a minute to melt, and then spread the softened chocolate chips with a spatula.
  • Toppings: Try chopped pecans, pretzels, OREOs, M&Ms, toffee bits, peanut butter cups, toasted coconut, coarse sea salt, candy canes, or drizzles of white chocolate. Or, just leave it plain!

Step-by-step instructions

I highly recommend a candy thermometer so you know when the caramel hits the right stage in hardness.

  1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a 15” x 10” x 1” pan with parchment paper, foil, or a silicone mat. Line up crackers in a single layer in rows on prepared sheet.
Saltine crackers lining a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
  1. Meanwhile, using a candy thermometer, melt butter and brown sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and boil for 2 to 3 minutes (270 to 290 degrees if using a candy thermometer).
Someone holding a thermometer in a brown, bubbling liquid in a small pan.
  1. Immediately pour over crackers and spread evenly with a spatula. Bake 5 minutes or until the candy hardens. Remove from oven.
Someone spreading the sugar and butter mixture over the saltine crackers.
  1. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate chips in the microwave in 30-second increments at 50% power until melted. Spread over hardened caramel. (You can also sprinkle the chocolate chips over the hardened candy, pop it back in the oven until melted, and spread after that).
Chocolate being spread onto the layer of saltine crackers.
  1. Sprinkle nuts or other toppings and press into the chocolate using a greased spatula. Cut into squares while warm. Cool completely for at least 15 minutes and store in the refrigerator.
Four flavors of Christmas crack on a white platter.

Do you need an instant-read thermometer?

Because you want to make sure the caramel is at the exact hardness, the best way ensure it doesn’t overheat with a good instant-read thermometer. I love my Thermapen One from ThermoWorks and it’s one of my most used cooking tools. I get nearly instant, extremely accurate results every time. In fact, we named it the top pick in our roundup of the best instant-read thermometers. You can also use it for cooking meat precisely!

It’s a bit pricey and you can get it for $99 at ThermoWorks. It does go on sale every so often, but if you want a more budget-friendly option, I also like the ThermoPop, which is only $15.99 at ThermoWorks and it makes a great gift!

Recipe tips and variations

  • Yield: This recipe makes about 12 servings of Christmas Crack.
  • Storage: Depending on the season and the humidity, Christmas Crack should keep well in an airtight tin or container for about a week or longer at freezing temps (like on your patio or in your garage, Midwestern friends!).
  • Freezer: Christmas Crack freezes well! Break or cut it into pieces and store it in freezer-safe bags for up to 3 months.
A stack of Christmas Crack on a gray plate.

Frequently Asked Questions

Recipe FAQs

The caramel topping needs to get to the hard-crack stage or it will be chewy. This means you may have to bake it a little longer or adjust your oven temperature slightly (every oven is different). I insist on a candy thermometer.

What can I substitute for saltine crackers in Christmas crack?

Club crackers, graham crackers, or buttery Ritz crackers are all delicious bases for this candy.

Why did my Christmas crack layers separate?

Make sure the hardened caramel topping is still warm when you add the chocolate to prevent separation.

Why is my Christmas crack sticking to the foil or parchment?

It might still be too hot. Let the candy cool until it’s easy to handle, then remove it from the foil or parchment.

Christmas Crack on a gray plate.

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A stack of Christmas crack on a plate.

Christmas Crack

You'll love this salty, sweet, crunchy, chewy saltine cracker candy, sometimes known as Christmas Crack, and you can make it in 15 minutes with just 5 ingredients!
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 12 servings
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Calories 373
5 from 390 votes

Ingredients 

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a 15” x 10” x 1” pan with parchment paper, foil, or a silicone mat. Line up crackers in a single layer in rows on prepared sheet.
  • Meanwhile, using a candy thermometer, melt butter and brown sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and boil for 2 to 3 minutes (270 to 290 degrees if using a candy thermometer). Immediately pour over crackers and spread evenly with a spatula.
  • Bake 5 minutes or until the candy hardens. Remove from oven.
  • Meanwhile, melt the chocolate chips in the microwave in 30-second increments at 50% power until melted. Spread over hardened caramel. (You can also sprinkle the chocolate chips over the hardened candy, pop it back in the oven until melted, and spread after that).
  • Sprinkle nuts or other toppings and press into the chocolate using a greased spatula. Cut into squares while warm. Cool completely for at least 15 minutes and store in the refrigerator.

Recipe Video

Notes

  1. Chocolate: Sometimes chopped bar chocolate works better than chocolate chips. To melt the chocolate, you can either 1). melt it in the microwave and pour it over the top, or 2). sprinkle the chips on the hardened caramel topping, let them sit for a minute to melt, and then spread the softened chocolate chips with a spatula.
  2. Toppings: Try chopped pecans, pretzels, OREOs, M&Ms, toffee bits, peanut butter cups, toasted coconut, coarse sea salt, candy canes, or drizzles of white chocolate. Or, just leave it plain!
  3. Yield: This recipe makes about 12 servings of Christmas Crack.
  4. Storage: Depending on the season and the humidity, Christmas Crack should keep well in an airtight tin or container for about a week or longer at freezing temps (like on your patio or in your garage, Midwestern friends!).
  5. Freezer: Christmas Crack freezes well! Break or cut it into pieces and store it in freezer-safe bags for up to 3 months.

Nutrition

Calories: 373kcalCarbohydrates: 36gProtein: 2gFat: 25gSaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 1mgSodium: 275mgPotassium: 174mgFiber: 2gSugar: 26gVitamin A: 688IUCalcium: 37mgIron: 2mg
Did you make this recipe?Tag @culinaryhill on Instagram so we can admire your masterpiece! #culinaryhill
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Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.

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Comments

  1. Good recipe and when made as written will turn out every time, unlike the boil-for-three-minutes other recipes. One thing to note is that this caramel doesn’t leak down under the crackers so you will have a cracker layer and then the candy. I find the cracker layer kind of dry – I will make them next time with no crackers! Otherwise amazing. Thank you for a great recipe!5 stars

  2. I made this two times within 3 days. Both batches came out awesome and everyone enjoyed it. I was happy with the easy recipe and instructions too. Thank you.5 stars

    1. Hi Cindy, I think you might have missed the recipe in the post. You can see the amounts by clicking the “Jump to Recipe” button near the top of the page, clicking “Christmas Crack recipe” in the Table of Contents, clicking the link below the photo of the ingredients, or scrolling down the page until you reach the full recipe above the box where you were able to leave your comment. I hope you love this! – Meggan

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