Description

These Christmas Crack Cookies are a festive treat featuring a rich brown butter cookie base loaded with crunchy saltine crackers, sweet toffee bits, and melted chocolate topped with toasted pecans and holiday sprinkles. Perfectly soft with a slightly cracked top, these large cookies bring a delightful combination of textures and flavors for holiday celebrations.

Ingredients

Scale

Dry Ingredients

2 cups + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (270g)
2 tablespoons powdered milk (12g)
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda

Wet Ingredients

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

Mix-ins and Toppings

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

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Instructions

Preheat Oven and Prepare Baking Sheets: Preheat your oven to 375°F and line at least one baking sheet with parchment paper. It’s recommended to use two baking sheets and rotate them during baking to ensure even cooking.
Bring Butter to Room Temperature: Remove the butter from the refrigerator about 15 minutes before use to soften slightly.
Mix Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, powdered milk, salt, and baking soda. Set this mixture aside.
Browning the Butter: Heat 10 tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir frequently and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the butter develops brown bits and a nutty foam on top. Remove from heat and immediately stir in the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter until completely melted. Transfer this browned butter to a large heat-safe bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.
Add Sugars and Flavorings to Butter: Mix granulated sugar, brown sugar, light corn syrup, and vanilla extract into the browned butter until combined.
Incorporate Eggs: Add the whole egg and the egg yolk to the mixture. Whisk for 30 seconds, then rest for 3 minutes. Repeat this whisk and rest cycle two more times until the batter is smooth, thick, and shiny, similar to caramel sauce texture.
Combine Dry and Wet Ingredients: Use a rubber spatula or paddle attachment to mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients for about 1 minute. The dough will be very soft; no chilling is needed.
Fold in Mix-ins: Gently fold in most of the toffee bits and crushed saltine crackers, saving some toffee bits for topping.
Portion and Bake: Using a ¼ cup cookie scoop, drop dough onto prepared baking sheets about 3 inches apart. Bake for 10 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through. Cookies should look slightly cracked and only a little brown on the edges. Cool on the baking sheet for 3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Toast Pecans: While cookies cool, place pecan pieces in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 1 minute, stir, then microwave an additional 30 seconds to toast lightly.
Melt Chocolate: Melt chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl in 30-second intervals, stirring between each, until smooth and fully melted.
Decorate Cookies: Spread melted chocolate over the cooled cookies’ tops. Sprinkle toasted pecans, extra toffee bits, and holiday sprinkles on the chocolate. Let the chocolate set before serving.

Notes

Use a kitchen scale for accurate ingredient measurement to ensure cookie success.
Do not brown all the butter; reserve 4 tablespoons melted but not browned to maintain recipe balance.
Slicing butter before melting helps it melt quickly and evenly.
These cookies are large (4-5 inches). For smaller cookies, use a medium scoop and bake 9 minutes.
Chopped chocolate chunks can be used instead of chips for a richer texture and chocolate pools.
Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
You can add your choice of chopped nuts to the dough for added texture and flavor.
Cookie dough freezes well: shape dough portions and freeze on a baking sheet before transferring to a bag. Bake with 1-2 extra minutes of baking time directly from frozen.
If using salted butter, omit the added salt in the dry ingredients.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 cookie
Calories: 250 kcal
Sugar: 18 g
Sodium: 150 mg
Fat: 14 g
Saturated Fat: 8 g
Unsaturated Fat: 5 g
Trans Fat: 0 g
Carbohydrates: 28 g
Fiber: 1 g
Protein: 2 g
Cholesterol: 45 mg