Christmas Crack is just what it says: it’s crackly, sweet, and Christmassy, and you smash it ( crack it) instead of slicing it. Oh, and there are soup crackers on the bottom! If you love crunchy salt and sweet things, you’ll love this Christmas Crack.
For more great-tasting, chocolate-tastic recipes, why not try this Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe? Or how about some tasty Dark Chocolate Cookies?
Christmas Crack Recipe
You rarely get to use saltine crackers in a dessert recipe, but no other cracker will do this Christmas crack justice. This recipe combines saltiness, sweetness, and an intense crunch into every bite. This is known as crack for the “crunching and the cracking” it does when you break it. (unlike more modern recipes that use crack in a different way).
Plus, if you can find some Christmas sprinkles, you can decorate it and make it a true Christmas dessert.
Ingredients for Christmas Crack
This is just a list of ingredients for you to skim over and see if you have them or need to shop, the exact amounts of ingredients are listed in the printable recipe card below!
- Saltine crackers (a lot of them!)
- Unsalted butter
- Brown sugar (light or dark both work here)
- Chocolate chips
- Vanilla
- Christmas sprinkles
How To Make Christmas Crack
- Place all your crackers side by side in a single layer in a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Melt together the butter and brown sugar until they come to a boil, then boil for 3 minutes.
- Remove it from the heat, stir in the vanilla, and pour it all over the crackers, spreading it evenly.
- Bake in an oven for about 5 minutes at 400 Fahrenheit
- Remove, sprinkle with your chocolate chips and cool, then cover with your Christmas sprinkles
- Chill for 20 minutes until set, and then cut into pieces
What Kind of Brown Sugar Should You Use?
You can use either type of brown sugar in this recipe, but light brown sugar is the original.
The choice of light or dark brown sugar, though, is up to you. If you prefer your Christmas crack to be a bit lighter and sweeter, then stick to light brown sugar. If, however, you prefer the intense, dark caramel sweetness from things like fudge or toffee, then you should give dark brown sugar a try.
Fair warning, though; it will make it turn a much darker shade than you might expect.
Types of Chocolate Chips To Use
Just like with the brown sugar, you can choose what kind of chocolate chips to use.
The gold standard for baking treats is to use semi-sweet chocolate chips. Semi-sweet chocolate chips are a cross between milk and dark chocolate, making them perfect for adding a chocolate taste without adding too much sugar to the recipe.
White chocolate chips would also work and be very Christmas-themed, but the flavour would change.
Dark chocolate would be excellent and add a little bitterness to foil the sweet in this dessert!
How to Store Christmas Crack
Making sure your Christmas crack lasts to Christmas is incredibly easy because Christmas crack stands up really well to freezing.
To freeze your Christmas crack, smash them into large pieces once the bars are entirely cool, and then lay them in a single layer on a baking sheet in the freezer.
Once completely solid, layers the pieces between parchment paper in a closed container and freeze for up to 3 months.
This lets you get a slice of Christmas crack whenever you want—you don’t even need to defrost it! Plus, they taste ten times better than they do fresh, so you might as well make a giant batch in the lead-up to Christmas!
More Christmas Desserts
Try some of our readers favorite Christmas Recipes or if you prefer, check out some of our great Christmas Cookies recipes.
- Bourbon and Rum Balls – Mr. Magpie’s absolute fav, he’s making these right now!
- Perfect Whipped Shortbread – One of my most requested desserts during Christmas.
- Oreo Balls – So good!
Happy Holidays and happy baking!
Karlynn
Christmas Crack
Ingredients
- 40 saltine crackers
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup Christmas sprinkles
Instructions
- Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Line a rimmed cookie sheet (also known as a jelly roll pan) with parchment paper. Use more or less crackers as you need to fill the pan.
- Align crackers side by side in a single layer along baking sheet then set aside.
- In a medium saucepan combine the butter and brown sugar and bring mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. Once it reaches a boil stop stirring and allow to boil 3 minutes.
- Remove from heat, stir in the vanilla then immediately and carefully pour mixture over crackers in an even layer. You will need to spread it out evenly using the back of spoon.
- Place in the oven and bake 5 to 6 minutes until bubbly.
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle the top evenly with the chocolate chips.
- Let rest 5 minutes then using the back of a spoon spread the melted chocolate into a smooth layer. Sprinkle the sprinkles over the top evenly.
- Move to the freezer (or outside if you live where I live!) and allow to chill 20 minutes or until chocolate has set.
- Remove from freezer and break or cut into pieces. Store in an airtight container.
Notes
- you can make these for other holidays and occasions by simply changing the sprinkle colors
DJ says
Loved this!
Elaine Taylor says
Hello Karlynn,
These look like a great Christmas hostess gift as well. And very limited clean- up is a bonus !
Merry Christmas 🎄🔔🎅
Cynthia Beattie says
Love baking