Easy Saltine Chocolate Toffee Cookies

It’s 6:42 PM and you’re running late for a potluck. You’ve just spent the past three hours completely absorbed in who-knows-what at your computer (well, you know, but it’s certainly not work-related and you certainly aren’t saying), when you look up with that sinking feeling in your stomach, and realize…

You forgot to make something to bring.

If you’re like me, however, and you get that weird feeling in your tummy, it’s probably because you’re so excited that you get to prepare, bake, and eat these bars within 20 minutes of start time.

Seriously.

These are known within my extended family as “those delicious toffee fudgy indescribable cracker-based things.” Or, as one of my cousins so eloquently put it, “They’re so addicting, it’s like you actually put the crack in crackers.”

Let’s just say we’re not much for subtlety in my family. Eaters, however, we are. In fact, we’re just one amalgamation of really great chefs and bakers, which is why, when this Thanksgiving rolled around and I started getting family encore requests for this amazing dessert, I was sort of flattered.

The slightly sad part of the story is that I made these cookies well in advance, stuck them in the freezer so they’d stand up to the hour-long flight, towed an entire bucketful through security, and made it home with them–only to forget them in the freezer when we left for my grandparents’ house. So we were without them after all this Thanksgiving.

Of course, this could just have been my devious, diabolical plan to keep these deliciously addicting saltine toffee cookies to myself. But let’s say it wasn’t. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, giving, and all that jazz.

Heck, I’ll even share the recipe with you so you can make your own and won’t bother my stash. Then maybe next Thanksgiving, you’ll have your own stash hoarded away and you’ll understand what I’m going through, too.

On a completely unrelated note, Christmas lights have started going up on our street, and we’ve all started shopping for an exciting round of Secret Santa. Happy holidays, folks!

What’s your Thanksgiving go-to or most-requested recipe? Links welcome!

Easy Saltine Chocolate Toffee Cookies

Slightly adapted from Allrecipes

Yield: Approximately 28-32 chocolate toffee saltine squares

Ingredients:

• Approximately 28-32 saltine crackers, with salted tops
• 1 cup butter or margarine, room temperature
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate
• 10 undipped homemade lacy butter cookies, crumbled–or other toppings of your choice (see notes)
• For drizzle: 1/2 cup white chocolate chips, 2 tablespoons butter or margarine

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a 9×13-inch baking pan with enough foil to reach up sides. Lightly grease foil and line the bottom with a single layer of saltine crackers. Use more or less crackers as needed to fill up the entire bottom of the pan. Set aside.
2. In a medium-sized pot over medium heat, combine butter and brown sugar. Once the entire mixture gets to a rolling boil, set a timer for exactly three minutes. Do not stir the mixture while it is boiling; it should coalesce and become dark amber by the end of the three minutes. Remove from heat and pour gently over the saltines, making sure to coat the entire layer of crackers. (Avoid pouring too quickly, otherwise your toffee will all seep underneath the saltines!)
3. Bake in preheated oven for 5-6 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips evenly over the toffee layer. Wait 5 minutes for the chocolate chips to start melting, then gently spread the chocolate with a knife over the toffee until completely covered. Top with crumbled topping of your choice.
4. For drizzle: in a saucepan over medium-low heat, combine white chocolate chips and butter. Stir frequently until white chocolate and butter have combined and are smooth. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Drizzle over saltine toffee cookies.
5. Allow your toffee bars to cool slightly before breaking them carefully into saltine cracker-sized squares. Remove gently onto a wire rack, then allow cookies to cool completely before serving. (I usually allow them to cool at room temperature for at least a few hours before popping them into the freezer, but you can skip straight to the freezer if you’re pressed for time.)

Notes:

• Go wild with the toppings! If you don’t have any extra lacy butter cookies laying around (which I did), then you can substitute chopped nuts, candies, or anything else that strikes your fancy! You can also play around with colors and sprinkles for different holidays/occasions.