Simple Matzo Toffee!
Pesach Sameach! Happy Passover friends! As I've said before I'm not religiously Jewish, but my father is and I consider myself a cultural/foodie Jew. I absolutely love the celebrations of Judaism and grew up eating a LOT of matzo ball soup. And at our Passover Seder I was forced into eating a lot of matzo I did not want. As I grew older I acquired a taste for eating mine with horseradish and gefilte fish...okay, it's not something I'd eat every day, but when the time comes around, it is actually something I look forward to!
But my favorite thing about matzo at Passover was always when my dad broke the matzo and hid the afikomen piece somewhere in the house. As kids we would eagerly await the end of dinner so that we could search the house in hopes of finding it an exchanging it for some mullah. As I've grown older it's been my favorite to assist my dad with hiding it for the younger kids at our Seder.
Needless to say Passover is all about the unleavened bread. We eat it in so many ways and we buy the boxes of it by the dozen. In our house we always end up with an extra box...or 3 past the big celebration. So this year I wanted to think of a way to actually utilize the matzo that doesn't get eaten in a fun, creative, and different way. While I'm sure this recipe is out there already in many kitchens I wanted to use a basic graham cracker toffee recipe and swap out the graham cracker for matzo. And I've added white chocolate and freeze dreid strawberries! I think it's a great twist and really transforms the Jewish cracker into a tasty dessert.
So if you're trying to use up that uneaten matzo, or need a sweet treat to bring as a guest at a friend's Seder, this is the perfect treat! If you try these out, be sure to post a pic to Instagram (or any social media) and tag #feedmewithamanda.
Table of Contents
Tips on Ingredients
I do say this often, but of course the better the ingredients, the better your food will always taste. However, I do like to go over which ingredients that you don't have to have the best quality for and those that I think are best to get better quality if possible.
The items I would suggest getting better quality for, due to their flavor profiles and how that will affect the bake.
- Butter: I always suggest using a good quality when it comes to your dairy. This always helps the texture and flavor profile. I personally am a big fan of butter like Kerrygold.
- Chocolate: Yes, this one is really important. A good versus bleh chocolate is going to make the difference here people. So, my go to dark chocolates are Ghirardelli, Guittard, or my go to, the Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate baking bar. And of course for white chocolate, the flavor profile can really vary on quality, so quality chocolate is important.
Best Tips and Knowledge to make the Best Matzo Toffee
- Lining your pan: Be sure you're using a baking sheet with a lip, or a jelly roll. This will ensure the mixture doesn't go over the edge. You can also use a baking dish for this purpose.
- Breaking Matzo: When you break the matzo to lay it across the bottom, try to keep the pieces as big as possible. But if the pieces break and are smaller than planned, that's okay too! It'll all be attached/combined when the toffee is poured over.
- Making Toffee: Okay, heating butter and sugar on the stove can be intimidating. So, be sure you keep both eyes on the stove and are stirring pretty consistently so you don't burn the mixture.
- Tools: If you don't have an offset spatula, using a spoon or knife can work just as well.
- Foil: If you don't use foil or don't have any on hand, you can use another baking sheet on top of the toffee/chocolate mixture to help with the melting process.
- Chocolate and toppings: Feel free to mix up your chocolates and toppings. If you don't like white chocolate or if you're more of a sprinkle person than a dried fruit person...go for that! Do whatever floats your boat!
Ingredients
- pieces of matzo
- brown sugar, packed
- butter, unsalted
- dark chocolate chips (11oz bag)
- white chocolate chips (about 1 cup)
- olive oil
- freeze dried strawberries
How to make Matzo Toffee
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Prepare a 13x9 inch pan with parchment paper.
- Lay matzo across the bottom of the lined pan creating just 1 layer. Break the matzo to fill the entire bottom. Fill as many holes as possible.
- Heat butter in a small sauce pan on the stove set to medium. Once the butter has melted add your brown sugar and stir, bringing mixture to a boil. Boil for 3-4 minutes, stirring continuously. The toffee mixture should be very thick and sticky.
- Carefully pour the mixture on top of the laid out matzo and spread evenly with an offset spatula.
- Place pan in the oven for about 8 minutes. Watch carefully. The toffee mixture should be bubbling, but not burning. Remove from oven.
- Evenly sprinkle all the dark chocolate chips across the top of the boiling toffee. Cover the pan loosely with foil and let melt for 5 minutes.
- While the dark chocolate is melting, place another small sauce pan on the stove over medium low with the white chocolate and olive oil. Stir until melted.
- Peel back the foil from the pan with toffee. The chocolate should be melted from the heat of the pan. Use an offset spatula to spread the chocolate evenly.
- Pour the white chocolate into about 4-5 horizontal lines across the dark chocolate. Take the tip of the offset spatula and drag it vertically across the lines to create a swirl.
- Sprinkle freeze dried strawberries (or additional toppings) on top of the chocolate.
- Cover the back up with foil and place it on a hot pad in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours for it to set. If you have the time, overnight is best.
- When it is set, peel the toffee from the parchment and crack into pieces by hand.
- These should be kept in an airtight container and if it's warm out, you can store it in the fridge.
- Enjoy!
FAQs on Matzo Toffee
Yes, of course! You can add nuts, sprinkles, other dried fruits/berries. Whatever you like.
Yes, you can use milk, dark, semi-sweet, or milk chocolate or a mix like this recipe. However, make sure you're using chips or baking chocolate. Otherwise you might not get it the right consistency when baking/melting.
Other Holiday Recipes
- Holiday Recipes
- Easy and Quick Hamantaschen
- Captain Crunch Hamantaschen
- Small Batch Challah Rolls
- Jewish Recipes
Love this Recipe?
Did you make this recipe and just love it? Awesome! If you have a quick minute and could leave a star rating and comment below, I would appreciate the support and knowing your feedback! And if you’re over on Instagram, be sure to tag me in your photos!
Ingredients
- 4 pieces matzo
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 1 ¼ cup unsalted butter
- 11 ounces dark chocolate chips
- 6 ounces white chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ½ cup freeze dried strawberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Prepare a 13x9 inch pan with parchment paper.
- Lay matzo across the bottom of the lined pan creating just 1 layer. Break the matzo to fill the entire bottom. Fill as many holes as possible.
- Heat butter in a small sauce pan on the stove set to medium. Once the butter has melted add your brown sugar and stir, bringing mixture to a boil. Boil for 3-4 minutes, stirring continuously. The toffee mixture should be very thick and sticky.
- Carefully pour the mixture on top of the laid out matzo and spread evenly with an offset spatula.
- Place pan in the oven for about 8 minutes. Watch carefully. The toffee mixture should be bubbling, but not burning. Remove from oven.
- Evenly sprinkle all the dark chocolate chips across the top of the boiling toffee. Cover the pan loosely with foil and let melt for 5 minutes.
- While the dark chocolate is melting, place another small sauce pan on the stove over medium low with the white chocolate and olive oil. Stir until melted.
- Peel back the foil from the pan with toffee. The chocolate should be melted from the heat of the pan. Use an offset spatula to spread the chocolate evenly.
- Pour the white chocolate into about 4-5 horizontal lines across the dark chocolate. Take the tip of the offset spatula and drag it vertically across the lines to create a swirl.
- Sprinkle freeze dried strawberries (or additional toppings) on top of the chocolate.
- Cover the back up with foil and place it on a hot pad in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours for it to set. If you have the time, overnight is best.
- When it is set, peel the toffee from the parchment and crack into pieces by hand.
- These should be kept in an airtight container and if it's warm out, you can store it in the fridge.
- Enjoy!
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