Crack

I read a couple of cooking/food blogs on a regular basis, so I am constantly inundated with recipes that I set aside somewhere to "try later". However, the entire food blogosphere has been saturated by this one recipe in particular, and I just had to see if the hype was true. I used this version of the recipe, but the original post is here.
Turns out, it's so true that I actually had to get up twice in the past sentences to go eat more of it. What you're essentially making is a Skor bar. Remember them? Dark chocolate and toffee? Yeah, homemade toffee. I know, you're thinking "I don't have a candy thermometer. I have no desire to stand over a hot stove for 45 minutes stirring sugar until it turns into caramel, and then cook it until it will become toffee when hardened." Except that it's not hard. Except for the cooling time and injury time, I had this done in about 45 minutes total, baking and all.

Of course, it's just no fun if I don't change it somewhat, right? So here's what we did:

• For crackers, I used lightly salted matzoh (highly recommended)
  
• I should've trusted my instincts and used dark brown sugar instead of light brown sugar. I'll do that next time.
• Instead of the semisweet, I used the semi-pricey bittersweet chocolate chips made by Nestle (they're worth every extra penny, believe you me).
• We didn't have almonds, so I used walnuts and some Frosted Flakes as toppings. We didn't press the walnuts into the chocolate enough, so many of them have fallen off. The Frosted Flakes were an amazing idea.
  
• Instead of fleur de sal, I used French gray sea salt (another finishing salt). DON'T SKIP THIS STEP. If you are even remotely a fan of the sweet/salty combo, you want plenty of salt on the chocolate. It makes everything taste better.
  
• Instead of not touching the molten hot toffee mixture, I swept an errant drop onto my finger, where it immediately fused and caused the most pain I can remember ever having as an adult. This was worse than a migraine, people. Crying from a burn is no fun in many ways. Just look up what happens when your adrenaline pumps like crazy. That's what happens when you cause severe pain to your body. Yeah, it was awesome. After several hours of ice, 4 Advil, and a night's sleep, it seems to be better. Just a little tender and blistered. (It's possible it was totally worth all of that.)
• I would have also refrigerated it after it had cooled a bit, just to help it cool faster. If I hadn't made this at midnight, then this would not have been a problem, but I needed it to be cool before I went to bed.
  

Egads, you need to try this. I'll have some at happy hour today, so if you stop by...

UPDATE: After writing this and sneaking into the kitchen for yet another piece, I decided it might be extra delicious in the fridge, all nice and cold and crunchy. Best idea ever. I just ate a cold piece moments ago, with my third (fourth?) cup of coffee. Heavenly.

chocolate-covered caramel crunch
enough crackers to line a baking sheet
1 c unsalted butter, cut into chunks
1 c packed light brown sugar
big pinch of fleur du sel (optional)
1/2 t vanilla extract
1 c semisweet chocolate chips
1 c toasted coarsely chopped almonds

1. Line baking sheet with foil, making sure you have enough to create a tall rim around the pan. Line pan with crackers, breaking up pieces if you have to, to fill in any cracks. Preheat the oven to 375F.

2. In a medium sized saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar together over medium heat. Stir frequently until the mixture begins to boil. Boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add in vanilla. If you are using unsalted crackers, add in salt. Pour caramel over crackers and spread evenly with a silicone spatula.

3. Put the baking sheet in the oven, reducing heat to 350F. Bake for 15 minutes, watching carefully that the caramel does not burn.

4. Remove from heat and cover with chocolate chips. Let stand 5 minutes until chocolate melts and then spread evenly with a spatula. Sprinkle with toasted almonds and fleur du sel or whatever toppings you desire. Let cool completely and then break into pieces, storing in an airtight container.