Culinary Crack

I'm going to be quite honest, and let you in on a secret.  Christmas is wearing me out.  The funniest part is that it's still over a week away.  I've been doing all of the typical Christmas duties: shopping, wrapping, cards, etc.  I've also been a wee bit social too: cookie exchange, s'mores party, and small gatherings with friends.  I love this time of year, and I'm savoring every moment.  However, all of this savoring has left this lady exhausted.

With all of that being said, tired or not, I love you all too much not to share this tasty little nugget.  I made the recipe over a week ago, so I apologize that I haven't shared it with you yet.  Tonight's savory bite is Saltine Toffee.  Yup, saltines.  I made this recipe on a whim.  I needed a cookie for the cookie exchange, actually make that I needed over 72 cookies for the cookie exchange, so I needed something quick, easy, and incredible.  This fit the bill.

I had a friend over while I was experimenting, and we both thought that saltines and chocolate were kind of an odd pairing, but we know I love my salt and chocolate, so I hoped for the best.  Oooo Wheee, the recipe is heaven.  Culinary crack to be precise.  I had to laugh when the blogger referred to the Saltine Toffee as being more addictive than crack.  I will say that this is some mighty addictive stuff.  I'm almost a  tiny bit embarrassed to tell you that my friend and I, with the help of our girls, finished off the entire 1/2 batch that I made.  I then spent a bonding afternoon with my elliptical machine to try and undo any chocolatey caloric damage that had been done.

On a funny note, my friend K that was visiting who doesn't love to cook, has been making this toffee for everyone!  I ran into her husband today at the Tiny Teen's preschool Christmas party, and he said that K makes it about every other day.  With that being said, it's very simple and too tasty to even describe properly.

Base layer of Saltines.

Butter and brown sugar boiling.

Hot toffee spread over Saltines, prior to baking.

Chocolate chips evenly dispersed over the baked toffee.

After the chocolate melted, I spread it evenly, sprinkled on some sliced almonds, and put it in the fridge for a little over an hour for the chocolate to harden.  I'm going to have to confess that I never did capture a photo of the final product.  As soon as it was ready, we ate it.  All of it.  I still can't believe that I forgot to take a photo!!  If you click on the link below, the blogger has some beautiful, finished product photos.

This is the perfect treat for friends, family, co-workers, neighbors, anyone really.  If almonds on top aren't your thing, you could substitute crushed pretzels, sprinkles, or just leave it plain.  It doesn't matter too much, the toffee is so amazing that it will be all you think and dream about.  Oh, and P.S., if you are sitting there thinking that a treat including Saltines is weird...it SO works!  Just try it and see!  Enjoy!

Link to the Saltine Toffee Recipe