Cracker Choco-Toffee Brittle

  • Cracker Choco-Toffee Brittle
    This one amazes me.

    I like to think that the most popular desserts are the ones that you have to work hard for, but I’m amazed every holiday season when I make this pantry standby.  People go nuts for this easy-to-make dessert (seriously- they are just about as easy to make as Rice Crispy treats- another shocking crowd-pleaser), so who am I to argue with an easy recipe?  Easy + loved by all = More Sweets, Please favorite.

    (Oh, and give the recipe a shake up this year like I did… use a crumbled cookie as the base instead of a Saltine.  It screws up the name of the dessert, but I can overlook that.)

    35 – 40 Saltine/ Premium Plus crackers (OR you can break up gingerbread cookies or your other favorite crisp cookie)

    2 cups butter

    2 cups brown sugar

    2 cups /12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

    1/2 cup lightly toasted, finely-chopped walnuts (optional)

    1. Preheat oven to 400° and line a 13 x 18 inch cookie sheet (that has sides) with foil, and place crackers right side up in a single layer.  (If using cookies, sprinkle chunks & crumbs evenly over foil base.)
    2. Melt butter in a medium sauce pan over medium-low heat and add brown sugar, stirring to combine.  Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil for 3 minutes, without stirring.  Pour thick & bubbly mixture over crackers and bake for 7 minutes.
    3. Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle evenly with chocolate chips.  Let stand for 3 – 5 minutes, then smooth out with a knife or offset spatula.  Sprinkle with nuts (if using) and press gently into chocolate so they stick.
    4. Allow to cool in fridge, and break apart into irregular shapes (or try to cut into even squares, but good luck with that).
    5. Store it in an airtight container for a day or two or freeze for later.  (Again, good luck with that.)

    Tips:

      • Can I really use a cookie instead of a Saltine?  Oh yes.  I just made with crumbled Ginger Chewy Cookies (that were more on the crunchy side than chewy side- kind of a key point), and as always, these were the life of
        the party.  Other neat crisp cookie ideas:  graham crackers, sugar cookies, chocolate chip, digestive biscuits (Peek Freans in Canada or McVities in the UK), etc.  Just make sure you create a fairly thin layer on the foil, so don’t be afraid to break up into small pieces.  Oh- one more point- definitely use salted butter if you replace the Saltines with a cookie, so you balance the sugary goodness.  (I’d use unsalted butter anyway, but some people might have other plans.)  If you do use a sugary cookie, sprinkle salt over the top of the gooey mess before putting in the oven.  remember- without salt, how can one know sweet?
      • Toasting nuts:  pop onto a baking sheet in a single layer while the oven is preheating for about 10 minutes.  When you can smell them, it’s about time; peek at them a couple of times just to make sure they aren’t blackening.
      • Not a walnut fan?  Substitute your favorite nut.  Almonds make a popular brittle flavor; you could chop up slivered blanched almonds, or even use sliced ones.  Skip the nuts altogether, especially if you have used a flavorful cookie in lieu of the cracker base.
      • Breaking up the cooled brittle: unless you want your fingerprints to show on the surface of the chocolate (not an appealing look), use a piece of wax paper between your hands and the brittle.  Or latex gloves, but who has those?
      • What’s the deal with not stirring the butter & sugar mixture when it boils?  Hmm. It’s complicated kitchen science that I don’t want to bore you with.  Also, I’m not 100% sure about the details of crystals forming with agitation, so if you ask me questions I’ll just have to look online to answer anyway.

     

     

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    January 17th, 2012 | More Sweets Please | 2 Comments | Tags: , , ,

2 Responses and Counting...

  • carrie ann 01.17.2012

    Did you ever try to layer this recipe?

  • More Sweets Please

    You stopped me in my tracks. Holy cow, what a crazy-good idea. A double layer of this recipe would be absolutely insane- and here’s how I’d do it: I’d make a batch and set it aside. Then when batch #2 was at the stage where the melted chocolate was being spread over top, I’d place the first batch on it to ‘set’. Even if it didn’t work it would taste amazing… thanks for the idea. Oh wow.

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