Salted Chocolate Toffee Pretzel Bark
No candy thermometer needed for this divine easy chocolate toffee pretzel bark with a little sprinkle of sea salt. It is easy and delicious!
You are either going to love me or hate me for this recipe.
Five ingredients.
Most of which probably reside in your pantry right now.
Five ingredients that result in some of the most addictive faux-candy known to man.
Super easy chocolate toffee pretzel bark (with a little sprinkle of sea salt) is closer than you can even imagine.
And guess what? Huge bonus here, because you don’t need a candy thermometer to make this chocolate toffee pretzel bark.
Yet you’ll still end up with a divine toffee that is made other-worldly by being baked on top of salty pretzels and furthered by a smothering of rich, dark chocolate and a sprinkle of sea salt.
I’m not sure my life will ever be the same.
Neither will my postpartum hips, for that matter, but that’s a personal problem I’ll work out on my own.
Basically, to get this chocolate toffee pretzel bark from the web and into your kitchen, you’re going to simply line a large, rimmed baking sheet with foil and sprinkle it with broken mini pretzels (time to take out your aggression).
Then, a simple mixture of butter and brown sugar bubbles on the stove for a whopping three minutes before it’s poured over the pretzels.
If you are thinking this is very similar to the saltine toffee recipes floating around everywhere, you are a smart cookie.
You’re going to bake that pretzel/caramel combo, top it with chocolate, then spread the melty chocolate evenly over the top, and finish with a smattering of sea salt.
It’s almost too simple.
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Salted Chocolate Toffee Pretzel Bark
Ingredients
- About 8-ounces (227 g) mini pretzels, (half of a 1-pound bag) broken into smaller pieces, more or less to cover the pan
- 1 cup (227 g) butter
- 1 cup (212 g) packed light brown sugar
- 2 cups (340 g) semisweet chocolate chips
- Sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line an 11X17-inch rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Cover the bottom of the pan in a layer of broken mini pretzels. Set aside.
- In a small or medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the butter and brown sugar. When the mixture starts to gently simmer and bubble, let it cook for 3 minutes without stirring. Immediately pour the hot caramel mixture over the pretzels in a back and forth motion to cover most of the pretzels (a few empty/dry spots are ok as the caramel will fuse together during baking).
- Bake for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and place the pan on a cooling rack. Immediately sprinkle chocolate chips evenly over the top of the hot caramel and pretzels. Let the chocolate chips sit for 2-3 minutes until they melt. Use an offset spatula or rubber spatula to gently spread the melted chocolate over the toffee. Lightly sprinkle with sea salt.
- Let the toffee cool completely at room temperature then refrigerate if needed to help the chocolate set up. Break the toffee into pieces and try not to eat the whole batch.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted slightly from a recipe sent to me by Sara R. via Flower Patch Farmgirl
161 Comments on “Salted Chocolate Toffee Pretzel Bark”
This is a soft toffee. In the past I boiled the toffee in a pot until it reached 300 degrees. It came out harder and cracked . This does not do that. However it’s probably bettter for your teeth and it still tasted the same
Loved this and now do add ons like almonds. Very good recipe.
Some helpful tips if yours is coming out grainy (crystallized sugar) melt the butter and sugar together on low heat. You can stir very gently being careful not to get sugar on the sides of the pot. Once butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved turn up the heat to bring to a full boil then set timer for 3 mins.
It looked so easy. And delicious. I used waxed paper, though. I advise against that. The chocolate/caramel stuck to it. Even after refrigerating finished product, I was unable to remove waxed paper from the product. I had to chuck the whole thing in the waste bin. The bits that I tasted while trying to tear off the waxed paper were quite delicious.
Use Reynolds wrap non-stick foil that stuff is a miracle a dream come true I use it for spare ribs or sticky chicken wings they come right off never stick to foil clean up easy just wrap up foil and throw it in the wastebasket done!
OMG!! ADDICTIVE!!.. I STUDIED mad sites about toffee..cooked it 5 minutes with 2 tbsp of Kato light syrup..left wooden spoon in while it cooked..gently stirred it once in a while till it got to 300f on candy thermometer…came out PERFECT!!..
For the cost of 2 sticks of butter, a small bag of pretzels (I used gluten free), a cup of brown sugar and 2 cups of chocolate chips, you have a 9×12 pan of the most delicious candy. (I estimated a little over $6) Very easy to put together.
I typically make something similar with saltine crackers instead of pretzels, but thought I would give this a try. I think I prefer the saltines – the broken pretzels don’t look as appetizing.
I love this recipe, i made a bunch & put it in tins for gifting. The chocolate got white spots on it …tasted fine but not appealing for gifting. I used toll house semi sweet choc chips…any ideas?
If the chocolate has white spots, it’s possible it was overheated when melted (relates to tempering the chocolate).
I’ve been making this now for 6 or 7 years and I have to say I both love you and hate you! Well, OK, it’s my hips and tummy who hate you. This has become my favorite Christmas treat. I. Can’t. Stop. Eating. It. I made two batches tonight and I’m not sure that will get me (I mean us). through the holidays. We call it Christmas Crack, because it’s so addicting.
Also, funny story. I gave the recipe to my sister, who made it for her grands. They loved it and preceded to go to school and tell their teacher that their grandmother made Christmas Crack for them. Oops. She has since changed the name simply to Christmas Candy. I’ve got a grand on the way, so I’m guessing I’ll soon change the name too.
Happy holidays!
I made this for for the first time today. It was so easy to make. I did use a thermometer because I’m not the best judge to figure out when to set the timer.
It was so easy to make and so so good. Thank you for taking the time to share this for all.
Looks amazing! What’s the shelf-life? I’m thinking this would go over well as part of my Christmas gifting. Thanks!
Well covered this bark keeps well for about a week.
Thank you! Great recipe! I’ve brought this to a super bowl party years ago and have been asked to bring it every year since then! People look forward to it at the party. And it’s easy to make. So yummy!!
So yummy! I made it a bit more festive by topping it with snowflake sprinkles before it set.
SO good and SO easy! This has now become a family favorite. And you were right about the addicting nature of the candy . . . My husband and I are trying to use self control and not eat it all in one sitting
Help! I made this today and followed the directions. And it came out chewy and a bit grainy. Should I wait until there isnt a butter layer before I start the 3 min. timer?
Yes, that might help – start the timer once the caramel mixture is combined.
Can these be made ahead of time and put in freezer until serving? Looks amazing 🙂
I haven’t tried freezing this…I think the pretzels may soften a bit after thawing.
Been making it for years and freeze it. Never had a problem.
I froze a double batch of this last year and munched on it for months. It froze and thawed beautifully.
We make this every year – it’s amazing! Question: have you tried with dairy-free butter? I’m desperate to have it this year, but I can’t currently have dairy. Help!
I haven’t tried that – I’m sorry!
OMG – made this today for the first time. Good thing it’s so easy, because I’m going to gobble the entire batch up in no time flat!!! Made it with Nestle Tollhouse Artisan collection extra dark chocolate chips – YUM!
I just made this recipe this afternoon and as I type, this my husband is in the kitchen snacking on the results. He tells me he is checking to make sure it’s good enough to share with family!
I too had a little trouble with the toffee not being hard enough after cooling. I will use a candy thermometer in the future, as another reviewer said. It’s a good recipe. I’m not giving up yet.
Thank you, Mel!
I have now made this recipe 5 times. During the last two attempts, I discovered an error I was making in earlier attempts affected the toffee setting up properly. Once I let the bark cool to room temperature (about an hour in my experience), as the directions indicate, then put it in the refrigerator to harden the chocolate layer, that made all the difference. I then had breakable, not bendable, pretzel bark. 5 stars!
I have made this recipe 5 times now and figured out some practices to mention and to emphasize to ensure a successful result.
-I increased the butter and brown sugar amounts so my baking pan was more fully covered with the toffee layer. I increased the butter and brown sugar measurements by 1/4 C each. .
-I use heavy-duty foil on my baking pan with the shiny side up. I don’t grease or oil the foil.
-I begin the 3-minute timer when the mixture on the burner begins to simmer actively, beyond the point when there are only tiny bubbles forming around the edge of the saucepan.
-Use an offset spatula to smooth the chocolate layer after the chips have softened for a couple minutes as Mel recommends. I had a lot of trouble with this until I finally dug that tool out.
-It’s important to let the finished product cool on the countertop until it is at room temperature as directed in the instructions. This will take at least an hour and, for me, has been the key to success with my last two batches. After it’s fully cool, then refrigerate to set up the chocolate layer.
This is a wonderful and worthwhile recipe and is the treat I’m gifting this year. My sister and her husband tell me they love it. They’re trying to save it for Christmas Day when their kids arrive!!
I have made this a few times and it is wonderful every time. I want to know if this can be frozen??
Unfortunately the pretzels get soggy if frozen and then thawed.
I made this and the toffee did not set up and it’s way too much chocolate. I put it in the freezer with parchment paper between the pieces I had to cut, it wouldn’t break because the toffee was not hard. I will attempt this again but will modify the recipe with less chocolate and will cook the chocolate with a candy thermometer to make sure to get to the right temp for toffee consistency.
This is wonderful! I’ve made it for the last 3 years as Christmas gifts and it’s always a hit! Never had a problem with it sticking to the foil. Comes out perfectly every time. I sprinkle with a little Sea salt on melted chocolate and also sprinkle toasted pecans pieces. Perfection!
I have been making these for years. I follow the recipe exactly and they come out perfectly every time! Doesn’t matter if I use Toll House or Ghiardelli, they come out perfectly every time! <3
I’ve made these the last three years and have to say they are perfect!! Followed the recipe exactly and had no issues!! They are soooo good My question is how long can they be stored before they get stale?
Probably a couple days (especially if they are in a cool, dry spot and well covered).