Chocolate Toffee Matzo Crack
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With layers of matzo, crunchy toffee, chocolate, and sea salt, matzo crack is an absolute must for Passover!
If you like Heath bars, you’ll love this homemade chocolate toffee candy. It’s made with matzo, a Jewish cracker-like flatbread, and called crack because it’s so hard to resist. (Get it? Crack-ers.) Originally created by cookbook author Marcy Goldman of Better Baking, matzo crack is the Jewish version on crack candy (or Christmas crack), which is made from saltines. Both recipes have a crispy, flaky cracker layer topped with buttery toffee, melted chocolate, nuts, and sea salt. And the best part is that it’s easy to make – no candy thermometers, special equipment, or tempering of chocolate required.
Matzo crack is a dessert staple during Passover at our house, along with chocolate chip meringues, coconut macaroons, and flourless chocolate cake.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Chocolate Toffee Matzo Crack
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin by arranging the matzos in a single layer on a baking sheet.
Make the toffee: Combine the butter and brown sugar in a saucepan.
Bring to a boil.
Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until foamy and thickened, about 3 minutes.
Pour the toffee over the matzos and spread into an even layer with an offset or rubber spatula. Be very careful – it’s very hot.
Bake in the oven until bubbling all over, 8 to 10 minutes.
While it’s still hot, scatter the chocolate chips over top and let sit for a few minutes to soften. Then, use a spatula to spread the chocolate into an even layer.
Sprinkle with chopped pecans and sea salt.
Refrigerate until firm, about 45 minutes, then transfer to a cutting board and cut into squares.
Eat and enjoy or give as gifts.
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Chocolate Toffee Matzo Crack
With layers of matzo, crunchy toffee, chocolate, and sea salt, matzo crack is an absolute must for Passover!
Ingredients
- 4-5 lightly salted matzos (preferably the Streit's brand - see note below)
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter
- 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
- 1 (12-ounce) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips (I use Ghirardelli)
- 1 heaping cup chopped pecans (toasted if desired, for maximum flavor - see note below)
- ½ teaspoon sea salt flakes or kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with heavy duty aluminum foil, making sure the foil goes up and over the edges, and top with a sheet of parchment paper.
- Cover the baking sheet with the matzos, cutting and piecing them together as necessary to fill the entire pan.
- Make the toffee: Combine butter and brown sugar in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a whisk, until the mixture comes to a boil. (If it looks like it’s separating, just keep stirring; it will come together.) Once the mixture comes to a boil, continue cooking and stirring for another 3 minutes until foamy and thickened. (Be extra careful -- the toffee will be very hot!) Immediately pour the toffee over the matzos and, using a spatula, spread into an even layer.
- Put the pan into the oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the toffee topping is crackled and bubbling all over. Remove the pan from the oven and place on wire cooling rack on the counter. Immediately scatter the chocolate chips evenly over top. Wait 3 to 5 minutes for the chips to soften, then use an offset spatula to spread the chocolate into an even layer. Sprinkle with the pecans and sea salt. Refrigerate until the chocolate is firm, about 45 minutes. Don't leave it in the fridge too much longer, otherwise it will be hard to cut.
- Lift the foil overhang to transfer the matzo crack onto a large cutting board. Using a large sharp knife, cut into 2-inch squares. Store in an airtight container in the fridge and serve cold.
- Note: I love Streit’s lightly salted matzos for this recipe but any brand will work. If you can only find regular salted matzos, cut back or omit the sea salt at the end. If you can't find matzos, substitute Saltine crackers and omit the salt. You'll need enough to cover the entire sheet pan.
- Note: It's a good idea to toast the nuts for maximum flavor but, truth be told, I never bother.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The toffee can be frozen for up to 3 months: Place the toffee in an airtight container. It can be eaten directly from the freezer or, if you’d like, remove the toffee from the container and let it come to room temperature.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (17 servings)
- Serving size: 2 squares
- Calories: 166
- Fat: 9 g
- Saturated fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 22 g
- Sugar: 14 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Sodium: 36 mg
- Cholesterol: 14 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I’ve been making a version of this for the past 25 years. I honestly have to say this recipe turned out flawless. I did part of it with pecans and part of it with chopped pistachios and used Ghirardelli chips as recommended. This will be my new “go-to!”
Hey Jenn, is the caramel supposed to grainy or smooth? Both times I’ve made this the caramel has been grainy and not yummy. I know it can be so much better, what’s the secret? Thank you!
Hi Audrey, It should be smooth. Are you using real butter?
Yes, real butter. It had been frozen – does it matter if the butter is chilled, frozen or room temp? Has the grainy caramel thing never happened to you?
It hasn’t and freezing the butter shouldn’t matter. It sounds like your sugar is crystalizing. How long are you cooking the mixture? Are you using the full amounts of butter and brown sugar?
Jen,
I have a simple but ignorant question. I love chocolate toffee, but have never found a recipe that is simple and goof proof. Now that I have found you I thought I would check and see if you had a recipe – and found this one. From the reviews, it seems simple and yummy. But here is my question, I have never had it with matzo. How is it different and is this strictly a Jewish recipe for passover?
Hi Laura, That’s not an ignorant question! It tastes very similar to other similar recipes that use saltines. And you can use this any time of year — it doesn’t matter at all if it’s not Passover!
Jen,
I want to make these for my son & mail them. Do you think they will mail well?
I think you could get away with mailing these. Hope he enjoys!
I used saltines and halved the recipe. 1 stick of butter and 1/2 cup dark brown sugar (I love maple flavor). On a whim, on a few crackers I added raisins and dried fruit for chew. Loved it!!
Extremely easy to make and quickly became a family favorite. Now I just need to figure out what to use instead of Matzo the other 51 weeks of the year….
I also add raisins and/or slivered almonds
I’ve made this for years and I love your recipes. Today I made it to clean out the cupboard. While I wouldn’t recommend my method I emptied used brown sugar that was dried and leftover from 2 separate bags. My semisweet chocolate chips got had a white tint. (I think that’s called a bloom.) I literally used whatever was in the cupboard which made 2 kinds. Semisweet chocolate with chopped walnuts and white chocolate with cranberries and pistachios. All came out delicious… I share this just to say… The recipe is forgiving, flexible, and awesome. (I love pecans — wished I’d had some to use.)
I made this for (virtual) Passover 2020! It was SO easy and delicious. We hid it from the kids so there would still be some for the end of the seder. Well, the kids should have hidden it from us parents. My husband and I kept sneaking a square here and there. Come seder time, there wasn’t even one matzah sheet worth of the crack/brittle.
LOL – glad it was a hit!
Hi, I loved your matzo crack, the best ever. Your directions were detailed and your pictures were a great visual resource.
The second batch of matzo didn’t turn out as crispy as the first batch. The matzo was a little soggy. I used tin foil and parchment paper as recommended. The only difference was the chocolate. The first batch I used semi-sweet chips, the second batch I used nestle’s semi-sweet pieces. Please help as I am about to make my next batch. Thank you again.
Hi Monica, glad you like this! I think I’m likely weighing in too late to be helpful but I suspect that the chocolate was the culprit in the second batch. Chocolate chips contain stabilizers whereas the chocolate pieces probably don’t (so the melted chocolate may not quite as hard). Hope that helps!