#imadeit!

The results are always delicious.

I made buttermilk Belgian waffles for a breakfast for dinner potluck yesterday.

Topped with caramelized bananas in maple syrup:

And homemade whipped cream:

My friend Jessica told me about making this for Thanksgiving and she conveniently shared the recipe she used from about.com. Since it doesn't take very long, I decided to make this last night. I tried a couple stray saltines with just the toffee on them and even that was delicious. And, of course, I had to eat one with some melty chocolate before it cooled.

This makes a good amount of candy, perfect for a party. I packed some in a tin to mail to friends who just got engaged, and I took some to work today because working on Saturdays is so much better if you have treats to share. And after that, I still have enough to give a container full to my parents.

I altered the recipe a bit, by using dark chocolate and instead of Saltine crumbles on top, I sprinkled some sea salt. Here's my version. I'm not one for measuring except while baking so feel free to guesstimate this one. It WILL be delicious no matter what, I promise.

Saltine Toffee

1 sleeve of saltine crackers (NOT low sodium or without salt.)

1 stick of butter

1 cup of packed brown sugar

a little more than half a bag of Ghirardelli 60% cacao semisweet chocolate chips (I'm a sucker for dark chocolate anything, and I don't much care for milk chocolate, but any kind will work here, including regular semisweet.)

1/2 cup, or more, of chopped hazelnuts (experiment! Try using dried cranberries or cherries, or any kind of nut like chopped walnuts or pecans. Idea for next batch: slivered almonds with dried cherries sound amazing!)

optional: a little sea salt for sprinkling on top (dark chocolate, sea salt and hazelnuts is my heaven)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil (easier cleanup) and spray.

Arrange the crackers in a single layer on the baking sheet as closely together as possible.

Melt the butter and sugar over medium-high heat while whisking until butter melts and sugar combines completely. Pour the mixture over the crackers. I had to spread them with a rubber spatula to coat all the crackers, but they will spread a bit in the oven.

Bake for about 5 minutes until bubbling.

Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top of the hot toffee and let it sit for a minute (I let it sit in the warm oven after I turned it off to help the chocolate melt. I think the Ghirardelli chips are larger than normal chocolate chips and don't melt as quickly so you may not have to put them in the oven to melt.)

Use a metal spatula to spread the melted chocolate over the toffee in an even layer. Sprinkle with the nuts (or dried fruit). Optional: lightly, emphasis on lightly, sprinkle with coarse sea salt.