Description

Pretzel Christmas Crack, also known as Pretzel Toffee, is a delightful sweet and salty treat perfect for holiday gatherings. This easy-to-make recipe combines crispy pretzels layered with buttery brown sugar toffee, topped with melted semi-sweet chocolate chips and festive sprinkles or candies. It creates crunchy, rich bites that are irresistible and perfect for gifting or snacking.

Ingredients

Scale

Base Layer

40-48 pretzel crisps (or Pretzel Crackers, or 2-3 cups pretzels, not sticks)

Toffee Layer

1 cup butter (2 sticks, unsalted)
1 cup brown sugar (packed)

Topping

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ cup sprinkles (or M&M’s, or candies of choice)

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Instructions

Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350℉ to prepare for baking the toffee layer over the pretzels.
Prepare Baking Sheet: Line a rimmed 15″×10″ sheet pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil sprayed with cooking spray, or use a nonstick silicone baking mat to prevent sticking.
Arrange Pretzels: Place the pretzel crisps evenly in a single layer across the bottom of the lined sheet pan. Break a few crackers if needed to fill gaps, ensuring the entire surface area is covered by pretzels.
Make Toffee: In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, combine unsalted butter and packed brown sugar. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil while stirring occasionally, cooking for 3 minutes until it bubbles and turns amber colored. Remove from heat and carefully pour this hot toffee evenly over the pretzels. Quickly spread with a spatula to coat all pretzels.
Bake Toffee: Place the pan in the preheated oven and bake for 3-5 minutes until the toffee mixture starts to bubble on top.
Add Chocolate: Remove the pan from the oven and immediately sprinkle the semi-sweet chocolate chips evenly over the bubbling toffee. Allow the chocolate to soften for 1-2 minutes, then spread it smoothly with a spatula. If the chocolate is not melting easily, return the pan to the oven for an additional 1-2 minutes before spreading.
Decorate: Evenly distribute sprinkles, M&M’s, or your choice of candies atop the melted chocolate while still warm.
Cool and Set: Let the toffee cool completely at room temperature or refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour until fully hardened.
Serve: Once firm, flip the tray over to remove the toffee from the pan and peel off the liner. Break into pieces using your hands or cut with a sharp knife. Store any leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge.

Notes

Use a candy thermometer if possible to ensure toffee reaches 270℉-290℉ for optimal texture.
Breaking pretzels to fill gaps helps create an even toffee layer without holes.
For quicker melting of chocolate, briefly reheating in the oven prevents chocolate from hardening prematurely.
Store at room temperature for up to a week or refrigerate to keep chocolate firm longer.
Customize toppings with nuts, different candies, or sea salt for extra flavor.