Tuesday Treats & Titles: Christmas Crack(le) Candy

It’s December. Christmas is coming–along with a host of other holidays depending on how you celebrate. Today’s recipe came out of my files, given to me by a former neighbor. Long story, snippet version: Very nice mom and dad and 2 boys moved in. Only was older and nicknamed them The Weasleys. As the boys had red hair, this made sense. I took them Christmas rolls, she brought us Christmas Crack Candy. When she became ill, I asked for the recipe and started making it for both houses. At Dad’s request, I stopped making the candy after she passed, but they still got my rolls. Anyway, they’ve moved on and a new family now live in the Weasley House. Yes, they’ll get my rolls too. Anway, it’s Tuesday and here’s a yummy recipe that’s quick and easy during this busy time of year.

Prep time: 15 minutes>
Cook time: 9 minutes
Chill time: 15-25 minutes
Total time: 40-50 minutes
Yield: 24 – 40 pieces (depending on the size)

Ingredients

Let’s Make It

1 – Preheat oven to 325F.

2 – Line an 11 x 17 cookie sheet* with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Spray generously with nonstick cooking/baking spray.

3 – Line the pan with saltine crackers, the sides touching. (Crackers are about 2″x2″ square so you should get 5 across and 8 down. They won’t quite touch the sides of the pan becaue of the foil).

4 – In a small sauce pan, melt the butter and brown sugar over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Once the butter is melted, bring to a gentle boil for 3 minutes. No more, no less! Continue stirring constantly.

5 – Once the mixture thickens to “toffee,” spread it over the crackers. Bake in preheated oven for 9 minutes.**

6 – After toffee is baked, remove pan. Sprinkle 2 cups of chocolate chips and gently spread using a rubber or silicone spatula. (See Tip 1). Once the chocolate is evenly spread, sprinkle 1 cup of white chocolate chips on top, followed by M&Ms and the holiday sprinkles.

7 – Put baking sheet in freezer to harden (about 15 minutes). No room in the freezer? Chill in the fridge for about 45 minutes.

8 – Once the candy is hardened, “crack” into bars using a knife or break into pieces using your hands.

*Cookie sheet/pan should have sides

**Turn off the oven and let it cool a little while you are adding the toppings. See Tips…

Tips:

1 – I like my chocolate melted a little so after I sprinkled and s[read the chocolate chips on top and they hadn’t melted enough to suit me, I slipped the pan back into the oven for just a couple of minutes to help melt the chips before adding the rest of the toppings.

2 – You can add peanuts, pecans, crunched pretzels, and/or peanut M&Ms to make the taste combinations you enjoy. You can substitute dark chocolate chips for the semi-sweet, butter scotch for the white, etc.

Our guest “cook” today is Bridget Nolan, a Southie girl born and bred. She takes no guff from anyone and she’ll tell you that she’s “addicted” to three things: Dropkick Murphy, Christmas Crack Candy and tough guy Sean Sullivan. “Though not necessarily in that order,” Bridget teases. “Me and Ma, we made sheets and sheets of this stuff every Christmas. When I was little, Ma let me use her wooden meat mallet to bang on the candy to break it up. Once I figured out that any small piece was deemed unacceptable for gifting but were fair game for us kids to eat, I went to town with that mallet.” Her eyes twinkle as she adds, “Needless to say, my shift as head cracker didn’t last long.” She shares a look with the other mates. “You should know that these guys? They have wicked sweet tooths.”

Don’t we all? You can read about how Sean rescued Bridget in MOONSTRUCK MAFIA: BOSTON. Just click on any of the pics with the book cover, the title, or here: Books2Read to head over to the landing page to find your favorite on-line book seller. Is there a tradition of sharing Christmas treats/food dishes with neighbors in your family? What do you share? And

2 Responses to Tuesday Treats & Titles: Christmas Crack(le) Candy

jovialvampyre says:

December 3, 2024 at 2:30 pm

I used to make 32 pounds of fudge every Christmas and share it. About 5 years ago when my shoulders gave out I couldn’t do it anymore. Now only a few get fudge and I have to have Chris help me out.

Hope you’re better and having a good day.

- Silver James says:
  
  December 3, 2024 at 5:43 pm
  
  Fudge is tough–especially 32 POUNDS! Holy chocolate! My rolls are far lighter. LOL Hope yours was a good one. 😀