A few weeks ago, I went to a barbecue. On the table there was plate of what looked to be a chocolate type dish that was crumbled up. I grabbed a piece, ate it, had eight more pieces, and then went on a mad hunt throughout the barbeque to see who brought the stuff and how much I would have to pay them for the recipe.
After not too much work I tracked it down, and trust me. You want to make this Brickle.
What’s fantastic about this stuff is many things. First, it marries salty and sweet perfectly which is my favorite. Second, it is super easy to make. Third, it is best kept and eaten frozen so it is awesome for summertime.
Brickle
Equipment
Ingredients
- 40 Saltine crackers, one sleeve about
- 1 Cup salted butter, don’t substitute
- 1 Cup brown sugar
- 12 ounces chocolate chips
- 6 Heath bars, crunched up for topping
Instructions
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil.
- Then layer in crackers. Make sure that they don’t overlap.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan and then stir in the brown sugar. Once it starts bubbling, turn the heat to medium-low and simmer for 3 minutes. Stir continuously or it might burn.
- Once it has simmered for a few minutes, pour it straight on the crackers. Try to get it kind of even, but don’t worry about covering everything.
- Next, stick your baking sheet in the oven at 325 °F for 5-10 minutes. The original recipe called for 5 minutes, but mine took 10. Basically, you want the caramel to spread out nicely over the crackers. It should bubble a bit.
- When you take it out of the oven, pour the chocolate chips on the tray right away. The residual heat from the oven will be more than enough to melt the chocolate. Let it sit for 5 minutes to melt.
- Meanwhile, crumble up some heath bars.
- After 5 minutes, use a spatula to spread out the chocolate and make the chips flat. Then sprinkle on the Heath pieces.
- Then just stick this whole thing in the freezer! You have to make sure you give this stuff time to freeze solid. I let mine sit for about 4 hours in there and that was more than enough time.
- Then take it out and if the brickle is rock hard, flip it over and peel of the foil which should come off in one full sheet!
- Then just bust the stuff up! Take out some aggression! One note though… make sure you take the foil off before you break it up. That is, unless your idea of a good time is peeling hundreds of tiny foil pieces off of candy.
- Store this stuff in the freezer. It will keep for a month.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Brickle Basics
This is all you need! The Saltine crackers are the key to the saltiness and they are kind of hard to identify in the final product because it is all broken up.
The next part is simple. Take your largest sheet or baking tray (make sure it is rimmed) and line it with foil. Then toss down your crackers. Make sure that they don’t overlap. That’s pretty much the only rule. The crackers should fill up the baking sheet perfectly. If you have a smaller baking sheet, then you will obviously need less crackers.
Ok. Now the only actual hard part in the whole recipe and it isn’t that hard: making the caramel. Just melt your butter in a saucepan and then stir in your brown sugar. Once it starts bubbling, turn the heat to medium-low and simmer for 3 minutes. Stir continuously or it might burn.
The caramel will be pretty runny and that is good. Once it has simmered for a few minutes, pour it straight on the crackers. Try to get it kind of even, but don’t worry about covering everything.
Finishing the brickle
Next, stick your baking sheet in the oven at 325 degrees for 5-10 minutes. The original recipe called for 5 minutes, but mine took 10. Basically, you want the caramel to spread out nicely over the crackers. It should bubble a bit.
When you take it out of the oven, pour your chocolate chips on the tray right away. The residual heat from the oven will be more than enough to melt the chocolate. Let it sit for 5 minutes to melt.
You can use those 5 minutes while the chocolate melts to crumble up your Heath bars. Again, don’t worry about making them even or anything. Part of the charm of this dish is the random sizes of everything.
After 5 minutes, use a spatula to spread out your chocolate and make the chips flat. Then sprinkle on your Heath pieces.
Then just stick this whole thing in your freezer! You have to make sure you give this stuff time to freeze solid. I let mine sit for about 4 hours in there and that was more than enough time.
Then take it out and if your brickle is rock hard, flip it over and peel of the foil which should come off in one full sheet!
Then just bust the stuff up! Take out some aggression! One note though… make sure you take the foil off before you break it up. That is, unless your idea of a good time is peeling hundreds of tiny foil pieces off of candy.
Store this stuff in the freezer. It will keep for a month I’m sure. Not that anyone has ever actually let it sit that long. Mine was gone in a few days without any problem at all.
An easy recipe and a delicious dessert. It’s a perfect dessert for a party.
Make the brickle. Eat the brickle. Share the brickle. Love the brickle.
You might like these other sweet treats!
Billie
This is a staple in my house! The grand kids just love it and beg for it! I have found using different types of chips really add a lot. At the holidays we love to make with some peppermint chocolate chips, you mix half peppermint and half regular chips, all the rest the same. A must try, Really good.
Billie
Mooch
We call it "cracker candy" :P
Debra
I make this all the time, but sometimes use graham crackers and always use semi-sweet choc chips. Awesome stuff.
AJM
I love the brickle. I'm hosting a birthday BBQ this weekend, and I'm totally gonna try this out.
Karolinka27
Dude, Nick, where were you for the multiple book clubs that Classic-Katie made a nearly identical version of this treat…um, were you really that into the book or did you drink too much wine?! That said, I want to eat those. Now.
Amanda @ Mrs.W'
Brilliant–and evil. I'm making this for my next outdoor get-together. They'll love it.
Leslie
Totally forgot about this stuff…which might be a good thing. My sister makes it around the holidays and I could seriously eat an entire container of it in one sitting.
lk- healthy deliciou
I've had these before- they're delicious!!
Lauren
Someone used to bring this to youth group meetings when I was a kid – it's as addictive and tasty as you say!
Bro
The broken up Heath bars on top of the giant Heath bar. Nice.
Shannalee
Totally made this for the first time last month, and it was a huge hit. Brought some to work, and everyone wanted the recipe. Can you believe how easy it is? Love it.
Cookin' Canuck
Wow, I was so surprised by the saltine crackers. I will definitely be making this.
Jason Sandeman
Where were you a week ago with this recipe? I had a BBQ Sunday for my kid's 2nd birthday, and this would have gone over awesome!
I wounder how it would be if a person where to cut in peanut butter or butterscotch chips in with the chocolate? Make something like a marble?
As always, your pictures are fantastic! You are a great inspiration to me, if I could only be half the blog you are, LOL. Man, I need help there!
Tracy Hill
We made it withot heath bar and used butterscotch and it was amazing. My husband can not have choclate thats is why we tried and now we are addicted to it with butterschotch
MaryMc
I made it with pretzels in place of the crackers (I got some square ones, kind of a grid pattern inside with small holes) and it was FABULOUS!! Thanks!
Jackie
these were a staple in college, they were always gone within an hour!
Natalie
We always make this for Passover but with Matzo crackers instead of saltines and with almonds sprinkled on top!!! They're definitely better than the gifelte fish!!! Hahah
Jon
My mom makes this stuff when I visit on vacation but she calls it cracker candy. Regardless of moniker, this stuff is incredibly good.
Brianna
I just finished making this! But I have to wait for it to freeze!!! T_T WWWWHHHYYYYYYYYYYY……..
There are a bunch of finger scrapes in the chocolate and health too…
shelly
try using club crachers. extra buttery flavor!! yumm.
Heidi
I just 'stumbled upon' this page of your blog and was so suprised. I recently started a blog and one of the first things I posted about was my "Cracker Candy" which is similiar. I can't wait to try your version. I've started using a silpat liner instead of foil and it works great.
Jennifer
funny. paula deen makes the same thing…its called PINE BARK. i have been making this for years.
Zoe
thats cool i just stumbled on this page and its awsome im going to use the candy crackers now but i dont have regular crackers is it ok if i use club crackers?
Chelsea
A good friend of mine introduced me to this tasty snack as "KrackerKandy" at a party a few years ago, and since then she's been elaborating on the basic recipe in some pretty delicious ways! I gotta say, this is something you gotta try different toppings with, you basically can't go wrong!
Kathryn Proulx
Mmm I want to try this but with reese cups instead of heath bars!
april agustin
Stumbled through this page, instantly made me hungry. Definitely going to give it a try :)
Leah
Ahh i love this stuff! I’m Jewish, and we make it with matzo for passover, since it’s kosher. =] Well…minus the Heath bar.
Tiffany
I bet, half chocolate chips and half peanut butter chips would make it even better.
Elena
I have tried this before, except instead of Heath bars I used chopped almonds and it is one of my favorites!!! I absolutely love it!
Jamie
Try using a chocolate orange, my mom makes this alot with Breton crackers and calls it breton brittle. If it was a crime to eat it I’d have soooo many consecutive life sentences.
Devon
I tried this recipe, but the chocolate chips did not melt. At all.
Terrie Erhardt
I tried this recipe, too, and the milk chocolate chips DID NOT melt. AT ALL. However, I was using a recipe that said to “melt butter”, and then add the brown sugar. Other recipes, such as the above, said to bring butter to a boil, add sugar, then stir for 3 mins. while it cooks. I asked a friend of mine about it, and she agreed that was the problem. I was shocked that the chips didn’t melt. I even put the whole thing back into the oven, to create more heat. Didn’t work. Looks silly, without the nice even chocolate glaze, but everyone loved the flavours!
Nick
@Devon and Beloved. The chocolate should definitely melt although it might stick a bit to your spatula. The things to remember:
1) Remember that you have to bake your caramel and crackers for 10 minutes or so before you put on your chocolate.
2) Use milk chocolate
3) Wait 5 minutes before you try to spread it.
It basically has to melt. Chocolate will melt in you hand so it will definitely melt on a 350 degree sheet of caramel.
Thanks for the comments everyone!
Crystal
Does anyone know the shelf life on this????
Nick
Hey Crystal, it’ll keep for a few days at room temp without a problem but you could keep it frozen for much longer and then just pull it out and break it up when you need some! good luck!
Beloved
I couldn’t spread the chocolate, and it hardly melted. The chips just stuck to me spat-yuuu-la.
Hunny Kidd
If they didn’t melt then you probably got cheated on the quality of milk choco chips. Believe it or not, that can make a difference.
Echo
I’ve made these for years. The only real difference is that I top the bars with roasted and salted (using super fine salt) pecans. It really ramps up that ‘salty/sweet’ thing. And I’ve never put them in the freezer. About 15 minutes in the fridge and they’re good to go. These are incredibly versatile as well. Using the butter/brown sugar mixture as your only constant, everything else can be changed to your liking…graham crackers, white chocolate, dark chocolate, peanutbutter chips, pecans, walnuts, assorted candies, etc. Your imagination is your only limitation !
lisa
I have been making these for years, never used
the heath bars on them we just called them
heath bar cookies. I do know though that
you need a teaspoon of baking soda in the butter sugar
mix it foams up and makes it get harder when cooled.
Joy
Why won’t my foil come off in one big sheet. I let it freeze overnight and still won’t come off????
Ariel
Oh wow, definitely have to remember this one come Passover, glad to see that suggestion! Yay matzoh candy!
Darl Knox
I am from oz what exactly is a health bar?
Darl Knox
Oops it a heath bar??????????????
Paul
A Heath bar is a milk chocolate covered Toffee bar… think hard English toffee dipped in milk chocolate.
no caramel or nougat…
Nick
@Darl. A heath bar is an American candy bar I think that is like a caramel nougat with chocolate. Delicious stuff. It's really crunchy and great as toppings.
Shannon
I hate you and love you for this.
Dianne
I have seeen this before, but did not try it. I am going to make this the next time they have a get together at church or maybe for the music class I help teach for Kindergarten. It sounds delicious and easy to make. I always look for easy recipes.
Thx
Jennifer
I just made this and it was great! I used the exact recipe except I split it between two cookie sheets of saltines and love it. Thanks!!!!
Steph
Just found this looking for something to make over Christmas, and really really want to try it! Been trying to find some english equivalents, any ideas what to use instead of saltines? I've read maybe Ritz crackers? There seems to be something I can find in Tesco or Waitrose, so I'll have a look. And Heath bars….are they like Daim bars? Very hard brittle toffee?
Nick
@Steph I'm not too familiar with English products… Ritz crackers might be a bit too buttery. Basically you just want a crunchy cracker that is pretty salty. That's really the only important thing I'd think.
Yep.. you are right. Any brittle toffee should do the trick ;)
Jessica
A great alternative to saltine crackers is graham crackers!
Becky
I have tried this with both the saltine & the graham crackers & I think I d like the graham crackers better.
Julie
My carmel never freezes. Is there a certain temperature I should aim for? I don't know what's up with it. :(
Nick
Hmm… It should freeze pretty solid if you put it in the freezer. Unless you are secretly putting booze in it ;)
Zoe
My first batch of brickle is in the freezer now. I honestly am not sure I’m going to be able to wait 4 hours til it freezes… nevermind the 20-hour wait until the party I’m supposed to bring it to.
Kya
Have had this in my foodie bookmarks forever and am going to make it tomorrow. I don't think we have heath bars here (Canada), but we have the exact same thing, we just call them Skor bars. They're one of my favs… Yummmm!
Paul
Skor was/is a knock off of a Heath Bar made by Hershey. Hershey eseentially bought the Heath Bar when they acquired Leaf who got it from the Heath Candy Company.
Kya
I had the same issues as a few other people with the chocolate refusing the melt. The caramel was in the oven for the proper time, and while the chips were willing to melt in my hand, they weren't keen on melting in the caramel, despite it being bubbling hot. I used those hershey's mini chocolate kisses, and even chopped them up before putting them on. My last attempt was a minute under the broiler since they even refused to melt in the oven at 200 and 300F… Hah! I've never heard of chocolate refusing to melt, but there you go.
Emily Rae
I made this the other day, no problems. I'm curious to mess with it – use pretzels instead of crackers, put slivered almonds on top, etc.
betsy
my mom has been making this for a few years now. around christmas time she puts red and green sprinkles or crushed almonds on top. also try dark chocolate. she also doesn't used brown sugar, just white sugar, though i'm not sure if that makes a huge difference.
Kylie
Could you substitute parchment paper for the aluminum foil lining? Thanks!
Danny
I make this all the time and only use parchment paper. It never sticks. You only have to refrigerate it for about an hour before breaking into pieces and enjoying. The tin foil is too iffy and longer wait in freezer.
Matt
Wow, so easy, but delicious! My girlfriends will love this!
Emily
any suggestions for a Canadian alternative for the heath bar? Can't find it anywhere!
Nick
Any hard toffee bar would work just fine I think. Good luck!
Robin
Hi Nick, pretty sure the Skor bar would be very close to the Heath bar.
Sharon
We make this all the time without the heath bar. We do however sprinkle the melted chocolate with chopped or sliced almond. My recipe is actually called Mock almond Roca.
jbguinn
Would this work with other candy bars beside the Heath?
i.e. butterfinger, reese's cup
nonya
Barbecue. With a "c."
Ette
so that's where twix got the idea…
taylor
I tried this and i put the chocolate chips on the pan and put it in the oven and they wouldn't melt, i tried to spread them and they spread a little bit but it was chucky, so i put it back in the oven, to see if it would spread it out more and it ended up burning the chocolate ): SO when i tried again, i melted the chocolate, then poured it on and it was a much smoother process
jackie
I’ve been told that the chocolate chips must be milk chocolate not semi-sweet or bittersweet. They are the only ones that will melt and spread smoothly with just a little heat.
Anna
I’m used both bittersweet and semisweet with success.
Bonnie
Love your site, recipes and photos! Just discovered it and can't wait to start trying.
Going to make the brittle first. I wonder why the chocolate doesn't melt. Well, we'll soon see.
Yinka Oyedele
I cater for partys and I am intrested in all traditional food, even with a good background in hotel management business growing up, I will appreciate it, if we are given this receipes and possiblly have teaching classes one faithful day as a cooking club. really willing to go oriental world-wide to know more about traditional receipes .
Dawn
I make this same recipe but with graham crackers, not saltines. Awesome either way!!!
Jacques Bouchard
You’ve been featured in our blog post!
http://blog.onwardhealthcare.com/2012/04/sidewalk-shopping-for-savvy-travel-nurses/
Barbara | Creative Culinary
I made something very similar to this using graham crackers; it’s from a Junior League of Colorado cookbook; think it’s Creme de Colorado. I’ve heard of using saltines and can only imagine that bit of salt is a bonus.
Jenny
This looks delicious and easy to make, my husband and son will absolutely love these!
Joanna
Made this over the weekend and can’t stop eating it. It was an easy recipe but I did find the foil a bit difficult to get off. Will have to try the parchment paper route next time. Loving the website!
Kim Hawkins
Some people I know call this “ghetto toffee.” I always get requests for it at Christmastime. I don’t use Heath bars tho…just butter, sugar, saltines, butterscotch chips & chocolate chips. Sometimes I use peanut butter chips instead of butterscotch…that’s a fave, too!
Susan Gosser
This is an absolutely terrific recipe!! One I have made many, many times and never have any issues with – other than it disappears too fast!!! Think I will make some today!!
Krista
Yes! I love this. We call it “Christmas Crack”
Marc
Haven’t made this yet but I’m thinking I will use Ritz crackers instead of saltines.
Gina
I only use crackers, butter and chocolate. Just delicious! I’ll have to try it like this.
Kaitlyn
ive made these before and love them. Just so people know, make sure but you buy good chocolate chips when making these. Just used SAFEWAY brand ones and they didn’t melt!! So frustrating
Melissa
Hi
Melissa
We call it Christmas Crack
Jen
I make this every year at Christmas. I use white chocolate morsels and top with red and green sprinkles. I don’t use the Heath bar. It’s sweet enough without it. I then put it in decorated mason jars to give as Christmas gifts.
Brenda
I made a trial run of this and it’s amazing! My butter brown sugar mixture wasn’t thin it as thick and frothy. It didn’t cover the bottom of the crackers and it wasn’t as candy-like. What did I do wrong?
Lindsay
I had the same problem.
Nick
Hey Lindsay! If your sugar mixture is getting too thick, it means you are probably cooking it too long or too hot. You really just want to dissolve and cook it slightly. It’ll continue cooking in the oven later. Good luck!
Nick
Hey Brenda, it maybe sounds like you overcooked the sugar mixture a bit. If you cook it too long on the stovetop (or too high of temp) it will seize up quickly and froth like crazy. You want to dissolve the sugar and brown it a bit, but not thicken it completely. That will happen in the oven. Sounds like it still worked okay for you though!
Brenda
Batch number two. Sugar mix still too thick but not frothy like the first time,so better but not quite right. Added walnuts this time also. Looks great but going to work on the sugar mix the next batch.
Alyssa
I use this delicious recipe every year for Christmas! Thank you!
Jamie
Hi! I made this earlier and when breaking/chopping the final product, the chocolate kept popping off the cracker toffee base. I chilled it for awhile too. Any ideas why?
Nick
Huh… that’s definitely a new one Jamie! What kind of chocolate were you using? I can’t really think of a reason why that would happen assuming you put on the chocolate while the caramel was nice and hot…
Cara Simonetta
I had the same issue. I used a knife it break through the hardened chocolate. On many of the pieces the chocolate came off the brckle bottom. Used a different recipe which called for bringing sugar and butter to boil and thickening a bit, maybe that was the problem. It sat all night before I tried breaking up so it was really hard.
sandy
I made two batches tonight. The first one I made with milk chocolate and sprinkled coconut on top. Amazing! I didn’t have a full bag of milk chocolate for the second batch so I grabbed whatever I had in the cubbard, some milk, some semi sweet chocolate and some mini morsels. I mixed everything together with some peppermint baking chips. It melted perfectly on the crackers. On top I put some more peppermint baking chips and a couple crushed candy canes. Turned out soooooo yummy! Thanks for the recipe! I will definitely make this again :)
Nick
Awesome Sandra! Glad it worked out for ya! Happy holidays.
Jacqueline
All I can say is, oh my, this is sooooo good!!! I was sick for Christmas with the flu, and never made this as I intended. I just did, can not believe how good it is!! Ingenious! I will definitely make this again. My family will love it!! Great recipe. I didn’t have toffee bars for top, but did use semi sweet chocolate and milk chocolate morsels mixed. I sprinkled sea salt on top!!
Jacqueline
I also used parchment paper. I lightly spray pan, line with paper, so it sticks to pan. Then lightly spray the paper again, line with crackers. Only froze it for 1 hr or so, came out pan easily, paper too!! Hope that helps anyone.
Alyssa
Wow! You are really an awesome cook and your recipes are always worth trying. We tried this recipe on our brother’s birthday and all the guests loved it. It is a well suitable combination with cake and I am obliged to say that it the best recipe for trying out on birthday parties.
Al
Any idea why the bottom would be sticky and gooey?
jesse
it’s called Christmas Crack at my school
Shannon Williams
This recipe is the best. I’ve made this brickle and slight variations so many times but I always come back to this recipe. Thank you!!!!!
Sonya
I make these for my co-workers and they call it ‘the crack cookies’ because they are sooo addictive. Super easy recipe with impressive results and a crowd pleaser for sure!!! When they ask for the recipe I tell them them to google Macheesmo and Brickle and it brings them to this recipe! Love it :)
Nick
Wow! So glad you like it Sonya! Thanks for sending people my way. ;)
Gacha
The vibrant colors and artful presentation of this dish are a feast for the eyes, and the explosion of taste and texture on the palate is truly divine.
Kathleen Noonan
My sister makes these around Christmas time every year and this year I made them too! She told me to use Gheradelli Chocolate chips, and she buys the health bars in a bag that are already crushed up. Makes it so much easier. She calls this “Christmas Crack” because it is so addicting. Mine are in the freezer for a potluck tomorrow. I can’t wait for people to try it. I love this recipe so much!
Millard Hillanbrand
I gotta bookmark this website it seems very helpful invaluable