Christmas Crack Cookies are a tasty twist on the holiday favorite that’s made with cookies loaded with toffee bits and saltine crackers mixed into them! Topped with melted chocolate, toasted pecans, and sprinkles!
My Shortbread Christmas Crack is another delicious twist on the classic Christmas treat that everyone looks forward to! Made with Lorna Doone Shortbread Cookies after just 10 minutes of hands-on prep!
These Christmas Crack Cookies will certainly spread the holiday cheer this season! You’ll find all the same flavors of the traditional treat just with the addition of a brown butter chocolate chip cookie!
Making the foundation of this treat a cookie instead of a cracker makes it the best Christmas crack recipe ever! Mostly because cookies make everything better!
Taking A Bite Into A Christmas Crack Cookie!
Taste: These Christmas Cookies are packed with a variety of flavors! You’ll enjoy the deep, nutty flavor of the brown butter chocolate chip cookie with the addition of crushed saltine crackers and buttery toffee bits!
On top, you’ll find a pool of melted chocolate and toffee bits that are topped with toasted pecans and sprinkles!
Texture: With all these flavors come lots of delicious textures too! The cookies are slightly crisp on the bottoms and edges but otherwise chewy and finished off with melted chocolate, toffee, and crunchy pecans!
What Is Christmas Crack?
Christmas Crack is known for being incredibly irresistible for its salty-sweet, crunchiness! The classic version is made with saltine or Ritz crackers and sometimes even graham crackers.
The crackers are the base of the treat with a topping made of melted toffee bits and chocolate! From there, everyone seems to finish theirs off differently with toppings ranging from sprinkles to chopped nuts, crushed peppermint, or even a drizzle of white chocolate.
In this variation, I traded the cracker base in for a cookie! And it makes this classic Christmas treat even harder to resist!
How To Make Christmas Crack Cookies
- Correctly Measure Your Flour – Measuring your flour correctly is an important step to avoid dry, crumbly cookies! Measuring Flour can be done with a measuring cup or a kitchen scale (affiliate link)!
- Brown The Butter – When browning the butter, slice the butter up beforehand. Doing so will give the butter a faster, more even melt! Your brown butter is ready when brown bits start to form in the bottom of the pan, the top becomes foamy, and it takes on a nutty aroma.
- Interval Mixing – You’ll notice that the instructions call for mixing the dough for 30 seconds, allowing it to rest for 3 minutes, and then whisking it again for 30 seconds. This stirring method is repeated two more times. Don’t skip out on this step as it is crucial for this recipe! This mixing process allows the heated butter to melt the sugar and create an emulsion with the eggs. Delivering perfectly tender, chewy cookies!
- Cookie Size -This Christmas cookie recipe does make large cookies that are about 4 to 5 inches big. If you prefer smaller cookies, you can just use a medium cookie scoop and then bake them for 7 to 9 minutes.
- Use Two Baking Sheets – I find that using two baking sheets works best! That way I’m not dropping cookie dough on hot baking sheets that just came out of the oven. Doing so slightly changes the structure of the cookies and we want to prevent that from happening!
Toss these Christmas Crack Cookies into your annual cookie swap container! Be sure to also tuck in some more fun cookies like these Reindeer Cookies and red and green Heart-Shaped Grinch Cookies!
I also make sure to add in some Linzer Cookies as well as a few Chocolate Mint Cookies With Andes Mints! After all, cookie tins are all about variety!
How To Store
These cookies are good to eat for 3 days when stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
Can I Just Use Salted Butter In This Christmas Cookie Recipe?
Yes, salted butter can be used in place of unsalted butter. To do this you will just need to omit the 1 teaspoon of salt the recipe calls for.
Do I Brown All Of The Butter This Recipe Calls For?
No, it’s actually important that you do not brown all of the butter as doing so would alter this recipe. Instead, only 10 tablespoons of butter get browned while the remaining 4 are only melted, not cooked.
Would It Be Ok To Add Nuts To The Cookie Dough?
Adding nuts to the dough would be just fine! Feel free to stir in pecan pieces or mix it up by adding in a different nut of your choice.
Why Do I Need To Rotate The Cookie Sheet Halfway Through Baking?
Rotating the cookies while baking gives them a much more even bake! Allowing all of the cookies to come out wonderfully chewy and not overcooked.
Can I Freeze This Cookie Dough And Make The Cookies Later?
Yes, the dough can be frozen to bake off later, which is perfect during the holiday season! First portion out the dough onto a baking sheet.
Then transfer the baking sheet of cookies to the freezer to flash-freeze them for about an hour. Afterward, remove the baking sheet and place the frozen cookie dough into a Ziploc bag with the excess air squeezed out of it.
Place the bag of frozen cookie dough in the freezer and use it within 3 months. The cookies can be baked from frozen, but you will need to add a minute or two to the baking time.
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Christmas Crack Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (270g)
- 2 tablespoons powdered milk (12g)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 14 tablespoons unsalted butter (196g) sliced into tablespoons and divided
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100g)
- ¾ cup light brown sugar (150g) packed
- 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk room temperature
- 10 Saltine crackers crushed
- 1 cup bits o brickle toffee bits plus more for topping
- ½ cup pecan pieces optional topping
- 12 ounces chocolate chips
- Holiday sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. It is best if you use two baking sheets and rotate them for the batches. Dropping the second batch of dough on the hot cookie sheet will slightly change the structure of the cookie.
- Pull the butter out of the refrigerator to sit at room temperature 15 minutes before using.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda, and set aside.2 cups + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon baking soda, 2 tablespoons powdered milk
- Add 10 tablespoons of butter to a skillet and cook over medium heat until melted. Continue cooking and stirring frequently for 2 to 3 minutes until brown bits start to form in the bottom of the pan, the top is foamy, and it has a nutty aroma. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter until melted. Transfer the butter to a large heat-safe bowl or stand mixer bowl fitted with a whisk attachment.14 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Add the sugars, corn syrup, and vanilla to the butter and mix to combine.½ cup granulated sugar, ¾ cup light brown sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
- Add the egg and additional egg yolk and mix for 30 seconds. Let rest for 3 minutes, then whisk again for 30 seconds. Repeat the resting and whisking for 2 more rounds. The batter should be smooth, thick, and shiny when done – almost like caramel sauce.1 large egg, 1 large egg yolk
- Use a rubber spatula or paddle attachment to mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients for 1 minute. The dough will seem very soft, this is normal and you do not need to chill it.
- Fold in most of the toffee bits and crushed saltine crackers.10 Saltine crackers, 1 cup bits o brickle toffee bits
- Portion the dough out with a large (¼ cup sized) cookie scoop and drop the dough 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating halfway through. The cookies should look slightly cracked and only slightly brown around the edge. Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool for 3 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- While the cookies are cooling, add the pecans to a small bowl and microwave for 1 minute, stir, then microwave for 30 additional seconds to give the pecans a slightly toasted flavor.½ cup pecan pieces
- Once the cookies cool. Melt the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl at 30-second intervals, stirring between each one until fully melted.12 ounces chocolate chips
- Spoon the melted chocolate onto the tops of the cooled cookies and spread to cover most of the top.
- Sprinkles the finely chopped pecan pieces on the melted chocolate along with extra toffee bits and sprinkles if desired. Let the chocolate set before enjoying.Holiday sprinkles
Video
Notes
- I highly recommend using a kitchen scale to measure your ingredients for a successful batch of cookies!
- Do not brown all of the butter, it will alter the recipe. It’s important that the 4 tablespoons are only melted and not cooked to the point of clarifying or browning.
- Slicing the butter before melting will give it a fast and more even melt.
- This recipe makes large cookies, about 4 to 5 inches. If you want to make small cookies, use a medium cookie scoop and bake for 7 to 9 minutes.
- You’ll actually note that this recipe calls for chopped chocolate and not regular chocolate chips, this is because we love how the flecks of chopped chocolate work into the dough and the large chocolate chunks create pools of rich chocolate after baking. However, chocolate chips can be used also.
- Nutritional information is an estimate that does not include the chocolate melting wafers.
- Store these cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. Enjoy them for up to 3 days!
- Can I Add Nuts To These Cookies? Absolutely! Feel free to add any chopped nut that you prefer to these Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies!
- Does This Cookie Dough Freeze Well? Yes, it does! To freeze the cookie dough, first portion out the dough onto a baking sheet. Then place the baking sheet into the freezer for an hour to flash-freeze the dough. Then, take the frozen cookie dough and place it into a Ziploc bag with the excess air squeezed out of it. Then place the bag of frozen cookie dough back into the freezer and store for up to 3 months. To bake the cookies from frozen you’ll just need to add an extra minute or two to the baking time.
- Can I Use Salted Butter In This Recipe Instead Of Unsalted? Yes, that’s fine. If you choose to do so just omit the additional salt this recipe calls for.
Nutrition
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