Christmas Crack

AKA Chatters' Crack, and most likely known as many other kinds of crack :=)  Nope, not the drug nor the Irish version of a good yarn in a pub, but rather, that delicious sweet treat of salty crackers topped with a caramel layer, and a chocolate layer, and lots of sweet bits and bobs of your choosing.

I have seen YouTube videos of people using pretzels and similar salty bases, but the Saladas worked out really well.  This recipe is a mish-mash from B. Dylan Hollis's book Baking Yesteryear, various foodie YouTubers, and a recipe from the Chatters' - i.e. Chat 10 Looks 3 - Facebook Page.  I pretty much halved Dylan's recipe; I was taking this to Cookbook Club, and there's only so much we can eat.  Just double it if you fancy more, or have a bigger baking tray!

so delicious!

Makes 1 tray of delicious chocolate treats:

ingredients:

7 x Salada biscuits  see Notes

110g./4 oz butter, softened

110g./4 oz light brown sugar

1/2-1 tsp vanilla extract

big pinch of sea salt flakes

110g./4 oz chocolate chips or thin chocolate like Lindt 70%

1 Flake chocolate bar (or choc. bar of your choice) - 30g./1 big ounce! - broken or chopped up

30g./1 big ounce chocolate hail/sprinkles

70g./2.5 oz pecans

And bling of your choice - M & M's, + chocolate hail, + sprinkles, whatever you fancy!

Method:

Turn on your oven to 180C/350F to heat up

Line your tray with alfoil and baking paper, and lay the biscuits down over the base - make sure you've left a large paper overhang so the caramel stays in the tray and you can easily pick the whole shebang up out of the tray when cutting/breaking up

Grab a medium saucepan, combine the butter and sugar over low to medium heat, and bring it to a boil, while giving it the occasional stir 

Now let it boil for 3-5 minutes, stirring now and then, till thick and gloopy (as Annabel from the Chatters' Page says) - watch it carefully; don't let it burn like some people may have done at some stage :=)

Stir in the vanilla and salt, and pour the hot, bubbly caramel mixture over the salty biscuits - you may need to spread it with a palette knife

Whack into the oven for 7 minutes, then take it out and sprinkle on the chocolate chips or pieces of chocolate (I used a Flake bar and chocolate hail also)

Let it sit and melt for a couple of minutes, then spread it out over the caramel-y crackers   see Notes

And throw on your nuts and bling!

Let it cool down, then break it up/slice it up into delicious chunks

Store leftovers (leftovers??) in an airtight container (the Arnott's recipe says not to refrigerate, but if you live in sub-tropical climes like me ...

Notes:

Dylan says to use 40 saltine crackers; my 36cm x 25cm baking tray held 7 Salada biscuits comfortably (one was broken in half to fit)

FYI - Saltines are 5cm x 5cm, whereas Saladas are 10cm x 10cm

If your chocolate layer isn't melted enough, whack it back in the oven for a minute or two

If you are doubling the recipe, bake it for a bit longer - maybe 12-15 minutes before adding the chocolate

oops! forgot the alfoil under the baking paper

Dylan getting into his crack :=)

let that mixture bubble!

throw on the chocolate!

and even more chocolate :=)

heading out to Cookbook Club

we had lots of goodies!

c. Sherry M.

(Joining up with Min for #WWWhimsy linkup.)