Graham Cracker Toffee Recipe

aka "Christmas Crack"

Yes, you can make candy! Just soak graham crackers with a quick hot homemade toffee that turns crisp, top it with a thin layer of chocolate and sprinkle with toasted nuts or without nuts, substituting bits of peppermint or ... let your imagination run wild! These crisp bites are addictive, that's why Graham Cracker Toffee is sometimes called "Christmas Crack"! If it sounds like a graham-cracker version of Matzo Toffee and Saltine Toffee? It is!

Semi-Homemade Candy, A Christmas Classic. Easy Toffee with Just Four Ingredients, No Candy Thermometer Required. One Hour Start-to-Finish. Budget Friendly. Potluck & Party Friendly. Easy to Top with Almonds, Pecans, Walnuts, Pistachios and Other Nuts plus Sprinkles, Pretzels, Dried Cranberry and More.

~ Skip Straight to the Recipe ~

Don't Make Toffee ...

Toffee is a holiday favorite for many. But oh! it can be so fussy.

Pull out the candy thermometer to achieve the right temperature and consistency – and don’t let it burn!

And even if you successfully make it through the cooking stage, the mixture can still be hard to work with.

I've tried, I've really tried. But never again!

... Make Graham Cracker Toffee.

Instead Graham Cracker Toffee starts with everyday graham crackers that are barely recognizable once miraculously transformed into a crisp, sugary-buttery-caramel base. Slide on a thin layer of sweet chocolate and wow, at this stage, the result akin to a DIY Heath bar or Skor bar.

But then? Sprinkle on some toasted pecans or walnuts. Or how about chopped peppermint? or snips of dried cranberry? or colorful Christmas sprinkles? or broken bits of salty pretzels? or tiny bits of candied ginger? pomegranate seeds? or a few flakes of a delicate finishing salt like Maldon salt? or oi, bits of chopped Heath bar?

These are easy and taste great too.

At a dinner party awhile back, I watched several people (not kids, grown-ups!) casually reach toward the plate for an extra piece, hoping no one would notice.

Be forewarned: these are addictive!

About This Recipe

• Graham Cracker Toffee is its own thing. It's not candy, per se. It's not toffee. It's not brittle or brickle or bark or bars. It's toffee-coated graham crackers (plain or cinnamon or wow, yes, chocolate graham crackers) topped with a thin layer of chocolate and your choice of toppings, I like toasted nuts the most. It's a cousin to other versions that start with matzo (it's Passover friendly) or saltine crackers instead of graham crackers.
• Distinctive Ingredients = graham crackers + homemade toffee + chocolate + nuts or other toppings
• Short Ingredient List = graham crackers + butter + brown sugar + cinnamon + salt + chocolate chips + toasted nuts + Heath bits + colorful sprinkles
• I love how these look. On a cookie plate, the irregular shapes break up all that perfection of very round or very shaped cookies.
• This recipe is a time-friendly. It has several steps but they move quickly. In about an hour, it'll be ready to pack up for a party or to sit down to share with family and friends.
• This recipe is pantry-friendly. Many home bakers keep graham crackers, chocolate chips and nuts on hand.
• This recipe is a budget-friendly. It uses common ingredients and makes about five dozen pieces.

How This Recipe Is Different Than Others

I didn't set out to create or share a recipe different than all the others, it's just the recipe I grew up with.

• Nearly all other recipes call for 2 sticks of butter, mine uses just 1 for a Small Batch.
• Nearly all the other recipes call for more sugar, too, 1 cup or even 1-3/4 cups, mine uses uses just 1/2 cup for a Small Batch.
• This means the toffee layer is thinner but really, trust me, no one will complain.

How to Make Graham Cracker Toffee

The detailed recipe is written in traditional recipe form below but here are the highlights in quite a few but all easy steps. You can do this!

• SETUP Setup is its own step, it's more than turning on the oven. First, it's important to find the right pan. For the Small Batch, look for one big enough for a packet of graham crackers but also small enough to fit in your freezer. For the Sheetpan Batch, use a full-size sheetpan. Once the right pan has been identified, it should be lined with either foil or parchment, which is then lightly buttered.

• ARRANGE THE GRAHAM CRACKERS This is an important step. The crackers get broken into pieces and arranged on the baking sheet with a little space between them. This lets the toffee soak down between the crackers just a bit, coating the underside as well. Those spaces make it possible to use less toffee.


• COOK THE TOFFEE This takes just a few minutes, cooking butter and brown sugar until it's thick and ropey. While it's hot, pour all over the graham crackers as best you can, then spread evenly with an offset spatula.


• BAKE! The pan then goes into the oven, where the toffee will bubble and spread further, soaking into and under the graham crackers.


• ADD CHOCOLATE CHIPS & BAKE AGAIN Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the hot toffee/crackers, then put back into the oven so the chips melt enough to spread evenly across the crackers. The chocolate chips won't "look" soft and melty but once they're hot, it's easy to use the offset spatula to spread them across the crackers.


• ADD NUTS OR TOPPINGS! Just sprinkle evenly across the topl. You can even do more than one topping, all mixed together or for what turns about to look like different cookies, in separate sections.


• LET REST for 30 minutes, letting everything cool down just a bit. The chocolate will still be all soft and wet, you'll be wondering how it's ever going to harden. But it does!


• FREEZE FOR 15 MINUTES In the freezer, everything sets up, including the chocolate and the toffee. From there on, the chocolate will remain hard, as firm as unmelted chocolate chips.


• BREAK INTO PIECES I like to make small pieces, since Graham Cracker Toffee is sweet and rich. And it keeps! Though word to the wise, just try to keep from reaching for "just one more" piece ...

You Might Wonder Be Wondering ...

Have another question? Ask away, I'll do my best to answer!

• Is the toffee hard toffee or soft toffee? Neither! It lands somewhere in the middle. I call it "crisp". The toffee isn't so hard or stiff or chewy to put teeth at risk. It's definitely not a soft, pliable toffee either. It is crisp, think what a graham cracker soaked in toffee would be like, crisp not soft or chewy or hard.


• Can Graham Cracker Coffee be cut into neat little squares? Possibly. I happen to like the irregular shaped pieces but it might well be possible to cut nice, even pieces. To give this a try, I'd pull it out of the freezer and wait until it cools to room temperature before cutting.

Bookmark! PIN! Share!

How do you save and share favorite recipes? recipes that fit your personal cooking style? a particular recipe your mom or daughter or best friend would just love? If this simple recipe for old-fashioned Christmas Graham Cracker Toffee hits the mark, go ahead, save and share! I'd be honored ...

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GRAHAM CRACKER TOFFEE

A Small Batch makes about a 10-inch x10-inch slab, easily broken into about 5 dozen small, irregular pieces
The Sheetpan Batch fills a standard sheetpan, easily broken into about 13 dozen small pieces
Hands-on time: 15 minutes plus occasional attention over about 1 hour
Time to table: 1 hour

Small Batch

GRAHAM CRACKERS
• A little butter, for the parchment or foil
• 1 packet (4.8 ounces, from a 14.4 oz box) chocolate or cinnamon or plain graham crackers

TOFFEE
• 1/2 cup (1 stick, 112g) salted butter
• 1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, optional
• 1/8 teaspoon table salt

TOPPINGS
• 8 ounces (225g) chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup toasted pecans or walnuts (or other nuts), chopped (how to toast nuts)

Sheetpan Batch

GRAHAM CRACKERS
• A little butter, for the parchment or foil
• 2-2/3 packets (about 12.8 ounces from a 14.4 oz box) chocolate or cinnamon or plain graham crackers

TOFFEE
• 1 cup (2 sticks, 225g) salted butter
• 1 cup (200g) brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon, optional
• 1/4 teaspoon table salt

TOPPINGS
• 12 ounces (340g) chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup toasted pecans or walnuts (or other nuts), chopped (how to toast nuts)
• 1/2 cup Heathbar bits, chopped
• 1/2 cup colorful sprinkles

SETUP Before starting the Toffee, set the oven to 375F/190C. Set up the graham crackers on a baking sheet (detail below). Measure out the chocolate chips, nuts and toppings, keep handy. Find an offset spatula or something similar to spread the toffee and chocolate.

GRAHAM CRACKERS (SMALL BATCH) Find a baking sheet or another oven-safe pan at least 10-inches by 10-inches, make sure it will fit in your freezer; if it's too large or the freezer is already full, you'll need to transfer to smaller pans that do fit in the freezer. Line the baking sheet with foil or parchment paper and if you think of it, use a bit of the butter from the Toffee to butter the foil or parchment, otherwise just use some extra butter. Break the graham crackers into four sections along the score lines and arrange in a single layer on the sheet, leaving a slight space between the crackers so that the Toffee can soak between; don't worry if the graham crackers break into irregular shapes, just butt them up against each other, leaving a little space between, kinda like assembling a jigsaw puzzle.

GRAHAM CRACKERS (SHEETPAN BATCH) This method works if (1) you have freezer space that can fit an entire sheetpan or (2) when it's below freezing outside, there's an outside space large enough for the sheetpan. Line the baking sheet with foil or parchment paper and if you think of it, use a bit of the butter from the Toffee to butter the foil or parchment, otherwise just use some extra butter. Break the graham crackers into four sections along the score lines and arrange in a single layer on the entire sheetpan, leaving a slight space between the crackers so that the Toffee can soak between; don't worry if the graham crackers break into irregular shapes, just butt them up against each other, leaving a little space between, kinda like assembling a jigsaw puzzle.

COOK THE TOFFEE Melt the butter, brown sugar and salt in a medium-size heavy saucepan over moderate heat. Cook until smooth and a little bit ropey and separating from the pan, about three or four minutes, stirring continuously.

SPREAD THE TOFFEE Working quickly, pour the hot toffee mixture directly from the pan roughly over all the crackers. Use the offset spatula to spread the Toffee evenly to completely cover the crackers, including the edges.

BAKE FOR 5 - 10 MINUTES Start checking at 5 minutes, the Toffee should be bubbly and slightly darker but not burning. Remove the baking sheet from the oven.

SCATTER THE CHOCOLATE CHIPS evenly across the top of the hot Toffee.

RETURN TO THE OVEN Bake for another 2 - 3 minutes until the chocolate turns soft, the chips will remain in "chip" shape but will become spreadable. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and turn the oven off.

SPREAD THE WARM CHOCOLATE Working quickly, use the offset spatula to spread the melted chocolate evenly across the graham crackers. Once it's spread across, use the tip of the spatula to shape the chocolate a little bit decoratively.

SPRINKLE THE NUTS (SMALL BATCH) evenly over the chocolate, gently press them into the still-soft chocolate.

SPRINKLE THE NUTS, HEATH BITS & SPRINKLES (SHEETPAN BATCH) across the top in three sections, one in each.

COOL at room temperature for 30 minutes. The chocolate will remain soft, you'll wonder if it'll ever harden. It will!

FREEZE for 15 minutes, either in the freezer or outside if it's cold enough; you may want to cover it with foil if freezing outside.

BREAK APART Break the crackers into rough pieces about 1-1/2 inches square.

STORE Graham Cracker Toffee somewhere cool or in the refrigerator. It keeps for several weeks.

ALANNA's TIPS In my experience, this is not a good recipe to make with kids, all that hot toffee, the need to work quickly, etc. Make sure your baking sheet fits into your freezer. Otherwise be prepared to transfer the crackers to something else for freezing. It's only in the freezer for 15 minutes so you might even take a few things out to make room, just temporarily. I had high hopes for a festive look from mixed white and dark chocolate. But it just doesn’t work. FYI I'm extra-fond of the Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate Chips. Trader Joe's pre-toasted pecan pieces are just the right size (and priced so well and so convenient) although could use a little more toasting. The Sheetpan Batch is so big, you probably do want to use three different toppings, just for a little variety. My favorite is the crackers topped with bits of Heath bar.

TROUBLESHOOTING
• THE TOFFEE After making this recipe for many years without trouble, after publishing it here on Kitchen Parade, I had trouble with the toffee soaking into the crackers in a couple of batches, I suspect it's because of differences between different brands of crackers? You really do want the crackers to get drenched, that's what makes Graham Cracker Toffee so good.
• So I've rewritten the recipe (and re-made) to specify breaking up the graham crackers and arranging them with a bit of space between. This is working here in my kitchen.
• Another cook says that his grandmother's recipe uses two sticks of butter and that it "really transforms" the graham crackers. I've re-written the recipe to include a large SheetPan Batch that uses two sticks of butter. It's more caramel-y than the Small Batch but neither one will disappoint.


• TIMING Other cooks have found that 10 minutes in the oven is too long. I've never had that issue with multiple batches in different ovens but you might want to watch carefully the first time you make this, start checking at 5 minutes. That said, my last batch, I baked the graham crackers for about 8 minutes, it worked great.


• CHOCOLATE Good-quality solid chocolate doesn't melt as easily as chocolate chips so if that's your choice for chocolate, I'd recommend melting it separately rather than in the oven, then spreading over top. Break it into pieces, then melt in the microwave in 30 second bursts.

FOR MORE INFO If you "skipped straight to the recipe," please scroll back to the top of this page for ingredient information, ingredient substitutions, tips and more. If you print this recipe, you'll want to check the recipe online for even more tips and extra information about ingredient substitutions, best results and more. See https://www.kitchenparade.com/2005/12/graham-cracker-toffee.php .

NUTRITION INFORMATION Sorry, due to technical issues during a laptop conversion, nutrition info and Weight Watchers points will be updated later.

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Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail, you'll find my current address in the FAQs. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, for more scratch cooking recipes using whole, healthful ingredients, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. If you make this recipe, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below.

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