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Christmas crack candy is a sweet, salty, and addicting toffee cracker treat that everyone loves during the holiday season. This gluten-free, dairy-free and healthier version of the saltine cracker toffee tastes just as good without any of the junk!
What Makes This Christmas Cracker Candy Amazing
Christmas crack candy, also known as "saltine toffee," is a must-have Christmas-time staple. It’s typically made with Saltine crackers, a sweet caramel mixture, then covered with chocolate and cooled to perfection. This amazing toffee cracker candy is totally addicting and makes such a cute gift to put in a tin and give to your neighbors. It is my favorite of all the Christmas treats (alongside this Christmas Puppy Chow or my classic Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies!
I call this the ultimate Christmas crack recipe because this truly is the toffee treat that everyone can enjoy. All 5 ingredients are gluten-free, grain-free, and paleo, and if you use vegan butter, it’s dairy-free and vegan! I think this gluten-free version tastes even better than the real thing. Perfect for those who have food allergies or intolerances. Want a version with pretzels? Try this Pretzel Christmas Crack for extra crunch!
Ingredient Notes
- Simple Mills Grain-Free Sea Salt Crackers: Most crack candy recipes call for Saltine crackers or Ritz crackers, but those aren’t gluten-free. These Simple Mills Crackers are grain free and so delicious. You can find them at Target, Wegmans, Thrive Market, and Costco. They are thin, crispy, and salty- the perfect cracker to balance out the sweet caramel and chocolate. They do have a bit of a savory rosemary taste to them. If preferred, you can also use gluten free graham crackers or gluten free salty pretzels instead! Schar Table Crackers are also a delicious option that kind of taste like gluten-free saltine crackers.
- Enjoy Life Dark Chocolate Morsels: I love these dairy-free dark chocolate chips for this recipe. If you have another favorite brand of dairy-free chocolate chips, feel free to use them for the chocolate shell. You can also use semi-sweet chocolate chips if that’s what you have on hand.
- Coconut Sugar: I use coconut sugar instead of brown sugar in my caramel sugar mixture to make this crack candy Paleo friendly! It has the same deep flavor but is a natural alternative.
- Butter: I like to use Kerrygold Grass Fed unsalted Butter. To make vegan Christmas Crack, I recommend using Miyoko’s Unsalted Vegan Butter. It will taste like the same delicious treat, but without the dairy!
- Vanilla Extract: Just a hint of vanilla adds so much flavor!
How To Make Gluten-Free Christmas Crack
- Preheat oven to 400.
- Line a 9×13 baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Spray with avocado oil or other cooking oil. Line the bottom of the cookie sheet evenly with crackers in a single layer until it is completely covered and they form the bottom layer. Set aside.
- Combine butter and coconut sugar in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium-low heat and whisk vigorously for 3-4 minutes over a low boil. It will appear to separate, but that’s ok! Stir until it resembles caramel and is a rich brown color. You do not need a candy thermometer – just keep a close eye on it. Remove from heat immediately and add vanilla.
- Pour the caramel mixture over the crackers and spread out while keeping them in an even layer. Put into the oven and bake for 5 minutes until golden and bubbling.
- Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a microwave-safe dish in 20-30 second intervals, stirring in between. When the crackers and toffee mixture come out of the oven, let them cool for 1-2 minutes until the bubbling stops. Pour the melted chocolate overtop and smooth/even out using a butter knife to form the chocolate layer. Top with crushed candy canes, chopped nuts, or chocolate chips, if desired.
- Let the pan cool and refrigerate overnight (or for a minimum of 2 hours for best consistency). Alternatively, you can freeze the pan for 1 hour. Waiting is the hardest part of this recipe! Once ready, remove the foil/parchment paper and cut using a chef’s knife.
Mary’s Tips & Tricks
Storage: This Christmas crack recipe is best stored in the refrigerator. It will keep for up to one week in the refrigerator in an airtight container. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months and let it thaw for 10 minutes before eating. Make sure not to let it sit out at room temperature for too long or it could melt!
Different Toppings: Top with crushed candy canes, chopped nuts, chocolate chips, drizzled white chocolate, M&M’s, holiday sprinkles, or your favorite candy topping!
Gift Tins: This yummy crack candy makes the perfect holiday treat or gift for your neighbors or best friends. I recommend storing it in the freezer before putting together your tins. Then,
- Line the tin with parchment paper
- Place the crack candy in the tin.
- Keep it in the freezer until you’re ready to gift it!
- Write a cute note letting them know the proper storage instructions.
Recipe FAQs
Readers have used all kinds of gluten-free crackers for this Christmas crack recipe. You can really use any cracker! Some that work great are gluten-free graham crackers, almond flour crackers, Schar Table Crackers, and gluten-free pretzels. If you’re not gluten-free, you can use Ritz crackers, Saltines, club crackers, or any other salty cracker you like.
You can, however, it’s best to use vegan butter like Miyoko’s or Kite Hill. Some of my readers have had issues with butter substitutes like Earth Balance.
There are a few reasons this could have happened. Make sure you let the caramel boil for 3-4 minutes before removing it from the heat and pouring it over the crackers. Also, if you didn’t let the crack candy cool down enough before serving, there’s a chance it didn’t get enough time to firm up. Make sure to let it cool in the refrigerator or freezer to harden.
Yes! Follow the same instructions as the original recipe, just swap out the chocolate chips for white chocolate chips.
Unfortunately people have had issues making caramel sauce with ghee. It separates easily. I would avoid it and use vegan butter for this recipe!
More Gluten Free Christmas Desserts
- Paleo Buckeye Balls
- Peppermint Hot Chocolate
- Grain Free Apple Crisp
- Almond Flour Gingersnap Cookies
- Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Blossoms
The Ultimate Christmas Crack Recipe
Equipment
- 9×13 inch pan
Ingredients
- 1 4.25 oz box almond flour crackers (or any GF cracker of choice), I used Simple Mills sea salt grain free crackers. There are about 70 crackers in the box. Hu Kitchen is another good brand.
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups dairy free chocolate chips, I used Enjoy Life brand. Hu is great, too!
- 1 cup grass-fed or vegan butter, Kerrygold, Miyokos, and Kite Hill all work great.
- 1 cup coconut sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400. Line a 9×13 baking pan with foil or parchment paper. Spray with avocado oil or other cooking oil. Line the bottom of the pan evenly with crackers until it is completely covered and they form the bottom layer. Set aside.
- Combine butter and coconut sugar in a small sauce pan over medium high heat. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium low and whisk vigorously for 3-4 minutes. It will appear to separate, but that's ok! Just keep stirring until it resembles caramel and is a rich brown color. Remove from heat immediately and add vanilla.
- Pour the caramel mixture over the crackers. Put into the oven and bake for 5 minutes until golden and bubbling.
- Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a microwave-safe dish in 40 second increments, stirring in between. When the crackers/caramel come out of the oven, let them cool for 1-2 minutes until the bubbling stops. Pour the chocolate overtop and smooth/even out using a butter knife.
- Let the pan cool and refrigerate overnight (or minimum 6 hours for best consistency!) Alternatively you can freeze the pan for 2 hours. Once ready, remove the foil/parchment paper and cut using a chef's knife (you can also use your hands but I find a knife works a bit better!). Serve and enjoy. Store in the fridge for up to 5 days!
Notes
- Line the tin with parchment paper
- Place the crack candy in the tin.
- Keep it in the freezer until you’re ready to gift it!
- Write a cute note letting them know the proper storage instructions.
Nutrition
All nutrition facts are an estimate and automatically calculated. While I fact check them using My Fitness Pal, please note that they may not always be 100% accurate and depend on ingredients used. Weigh your total and divide by the number of servings for the most accurate grams per serving size.
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This post was originally posted on October 29, 2021 and updated with new content on November 7, 2023.
I literally can’t say enough about this recipe! I made these with my husband for Christmas and we have made them so many times since. I was shocked with how much the caramel tastes like the real thing. They are so easy to make and taste amazing! The most difficult part about this recipe is having enough self control to not eat them all in one sitting! 🙂
Thanks Kelsey! I know these can be quite addicting 🙂 haha I appreciate your kind words!
These are good. Dangerously good. Like I can’t make them unless we are going somewhere or take (most of) the leftovers to friends. I had hubby help me the second time I made the recipe and he was surprised how simple it was, he was expecting a more difficult process. I have shared this recipe multiple times, it is definitely a new favorite!
Hi Heather- thanks so much! Glad you enjoyed it!
So easy and yet one of the best candies I’ve ever tasted! My family devoured this over Christmas. We used ghee because of dairy issues and it was amazing!!
I’m so glad you liked it! Thank you!!
These are soooo yummy! I made a regular batch for Christmas a couple of days ago – a regular batch, and small batch using Nut Thins since I’m very allergic to Sunflower seeds and oil. Both turned out great! So great in fact, that I have another batch cooling as I type. So easy and ADDICTING.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!! And that’s great to know it worked with Nut Thins!
Masking this now and forgot to grease the parchment paper! Fingers crossed! :O
I hope it turned out well!
I made this recipe today and it turned out great. It’s definitely addicting and very, very sweet. Perfect for a festive occasion. It needs to be stored in the fridge or the freezer or else it gets gooey and melty, so it is not the best treat for putting in a box and gifting or for sitting at room temperature for any length of time. The caramel is so delicious and was easy to prepare with the very clear instructions. I love the Simple Mills crackers and buy them all the time, but I would not use them again for this recipe–they contain some onion and garlic and I could taste it a little over the caramel and chocolate. I would try it again with a more neutral, gluten-free Saltine-like cracker. Really fun recipe, though–thank you!
You’re welcome, Cindy! Glad you enjoyed it! I agree the simple mills crackers do have a bit of herb flavoring. I’ve made this with regular gluten free saltines and it’s delicious as well!
Can I use lankanto brown in place of coconut sugar? I need to keep it keto
I haven’t tried it, so I can’t say for sure. if you do and it works out please let me know so I can update the post with that as an option!
I mean, oh my goodness. I went the ghee route and it was soooooooo good!!!
It cant be the dessert you bring to share at a potluck because it does begin to soften pretty quickly out of the fridge, but who wants to share something so delicious anyway!? 😉
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!!
Turned out great! I doubled the recipe and sprinkled coarsely chopped pecans on the caramel before baking it. Are these cookies going to get gooey when I put them in my gift boxes with my other cookies? They are really good!
Yay! They may start to melt a little bit – these are best kept in the fridge long term!
Yum! I made this today and it is so delicious! Thanks for such a great recipe!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! You’re so welcome!