Saltine Toffee

I seem to be on a kick of digging out recipes I haven't made in decades and cooking them up. Monday night, I wanted a quick finger food for the Reading and Rambling group. Usually I'll check Pinterest for inspiration but, this time, something made me go through my own Longaberger recipe box. That's when I noticed the Saltine Toffee card former neighbor Trish Arthur gave me way back in the mid 80's. After tasting hers at some neighborhood gathering back when all our kids were little, I remember making my own batches for a period of time. You know how that is - you find a recipe, you keep making it, and then the phase passes and you move on to some other go-to favorite.

Obviously, making this toffee is quick and easy. While it takes little effort, the results do taste like a poor man's version of toffee. Like eating a heath bar with a cracker base.

Gianne liked this tasty recipe so much that I ended up giving her what we didn't eat Monday night. Young, sweet thing that she is, she'd never heard of saltine toffee. Maybe now it'll be her chosen recipe to make over and over... until she doesn't.

Saltine Toffee

Ingredients:
Approximately 40 saltine crackers
2 sticks (1 cup) butter
1 cup light brown sugar
8 oz semisweet chocolate chips
Finely chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Line a jelly roll pan with aluminum foil. Spray lightly with nonstick spray (I didn't do this) and arrange the saltines salt side down in a single layer.
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar and boil til it turns a caramel color, a few minutes. (It will begin to pull away from the sides a bit) Remove from heat and pour over the crackers, covering them evenly.
Put the jelly roll pan into the oven and bake for 3-5 minutes, or until just bubbly, watching carefully. Remove from oven and pour chocolate chips over the crackers. (I used an entire bag of the chocolate chips). As the chips melt, spread them over the crackers with a knife.
Transfer the pan to the freezer for about 15 - 20 minutes, or until completely cold. Break the toffee into pieces. Store in an airtight container.