Peppermint Saltine Toffee Bark
Published Dec. 7, 2022
- Total Time
- 50 minutes, plus chilling
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
Advertisement
Ingredients
- 6ounces/about 6 cups saltine crackers
- 1cup/225 grams unsalted butter
- 1½packed cups/315 grams dark brown sugar
- 2teaspoons vanilla extract
- Large pinch of fine sea salt
- 1½pounds chopped bittersweet chocolate (preferably around 70 percent cacao)
- 2teaspoons neutral oil, such as grapeseed or sunflower
- ¾cup crushed candy canes (about 12 whole candy canes, see Tip)
- Flaky sea salt
Nutritional analysis per serving (24 servings)
313 calories; 19 grams fat; 11 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 40 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 31 grams sugars; 2 grams protein; 149 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered by
Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 13-by-18-inch rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, allowing it to go up and over the edges of the pan. Line the bottom of the pan with a piece of parchment. Arrange crackers over parchment in an even layer, breaking pieces to fit as necessary.
- Step 2
In a medium pot over medium-high heat, bring butter and sugar to a boil, whisking, until thickened and smooth, about 3 minutes. The mixture may separate, and that is OK. Stir in vanilla and salt.
- Step 3
Working quickly, pour mixture over crackers. Using an offset spatula, rubber spatula or even the back of a spoon, carefully spread caramel all over the crackers. (Try to keep the saltines all in one even layer.) Transfer baking sheet to oven and bake until bubbly, about 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool completely before topping, at least 15 minutes.
- Step 4
Pour about 1 inch of water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. In a medium metal mixing bowl that fits on top of the saucepan, combine chocolate and oil. Place the bowl on top of the pan. (Be sure the water is not touching the bottom of the mixing bowl; if so, pour out some water.) Reduce heat to medium-low and allow the chocolate mixture to melt, stirring frequently with a rubber spatula. (Alternatively, combine chocolate and oil in a bowl and microwave in 30-second blasts, stirring in between, until melted and smooth, about 2 minutes total.)
- Step 5
Pour melted chocolate on top of cooled crackers. Use an offset spatula to spread chocolate smoothly over the surface of the toffee. Immediately sprinkle the crushed candy canes on top and sprinkle with a little sea salt.
- Step 6
Transfer baking sheet to refrigerator and chill for about an hour to set chocolate. Break saltine toffee into large pieces for storing and serving. Toffee will keep at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a week, after which it may get a little soft but still taste pretty good.
- To crush candy canes, put them in a heavy-duty plastic bag, wrap the bag in a kitchen towel and hit the bag with a rolling pin or heavy can.
Private Notes
Comments
Lol. Right? Who ever has the room! Living in ME, I rely on the great (cold) outdoors/my patio table…
I've made a version of this for years, but instead of cooling the toffee and then making a topping, my recipe calls for scattering a bag of chocolate chips/chunks on top and putting it back in the oven for a few minutes, then carefully spreading. Much easier and fewer messy pots!
I have always puzzled over the direction to put a large cookie sheet, etc. in the refrigerator (or heaven help us, freezer). Do any of you city folks have the room in your refrigerator for that? Especially at holiday time when essential ingredients for special meals vie over precious space there? Any alternative for refrigerator cooling? I'd love some sage advice.
This is actually easy to make and the return on investment is incredible - lol!
Made as recipe stated. When I went to break up the bark, several pieces separated: the upper chocolate w/ candy canes separated from the cracker base. Much didn't but I'm wondering if there is a way to have less separation the next time . . . as there definitely will be a next time. It's delicious.:)
@Cheryl Winebrenner same thing happened to me. Could be a couple different reasons, the most likely cause is the butter and the sugar not heating at the same rate. If you used butter from the fridge and melted it with the sugar, the sugar will heat up faster than the butter creating a separation between butter and sugar. This causes a greasy film over your toffee that your chocolate won’t stick to. I’ve made this several times, and each time I use softened butter before heating I haven’t had this problem.
My family has begged me to never make this again because they can't stop eating it. Too bad for them. I will say that there is no substitute for real Saltines - I made them this time with a different brand and they just don't have the same crispness or texture. Also worth noting that it's impossible to find candy canes before or after the holidays - Starlite mints are an okay substitute but don't taste the same.