Christmas is a time for many people to whip up old family recipes like tourtiere, Christmas cake, shortbread or gingerbread cookies.
Some of those dishes make it to the table for Christmas dinner, and others are gifted to friends and family.
Genevieve Richer, who lives in Warren, east of Sudbury, offers up a crackling Christmas treat made with soda crackers to the ones she loves, presented in pretty little Christmas tins complete with a bow.
Aptly named “crack” due to the sound it makes when bitten into, Christmas crack also has a chocolatey taste.
The sweet treat is essentially layers of caramel and chocolate poured over saltine crackers and garnished with toppings like Christmas sprinkles, crushed candy cane, chocolate chips, red and green M&M candy or Skor bits.
Genevieve said salted caramel and white chocolate chips are also fun toppings applied to mix things up.
“To be honest, it isn’t an age-old family recipe. I discovered the best one online and then measured it with the heart. Usually in baking, I follow recipes to a tee, but with crack you can be a little more liberal,” she said.
The Christmas crack tradition only began six years ago while Richer was living in Timmins and recovering from knee surgery.
“I was bored and looking to keep my mind occupied. After glamming up my crutches with fancy duct tape, I started crafting and fell into a fascination of making Christmas crack,” Richer said.
That year, everyone was gifted with cute little pre-packaged tins or decked-out boxes of Christmas crack.
“I’m always the person that brings baking wherever I go. I opt to bring the dessert over casseroles. For me, it is really a stress reliever. As someone who deals with anxiety, the mixing and decorating helps keep my mind at bay,” she said.
Richer works with struggling youth and in the fall of 2023 she will also be returning to school to complete a bachelor’s degree in Indigenous Social Work.
She has big plans for Christmas next year including her Christmas crack.
Genevieve and her fiance are building a farm, under the name Anderson Acres, in Warren on their 165 acres of property.
She’s hoping her love of Christmas will grow into a Christmas tree farm and allow for tons of cross-country ski trails.
Once the kitchen quarters are certified by the local health unit, she will be making Christmas crack under the name “Made with Love by Anderson Acres”.
“I have just always loved Christmas. I used to go to Toronto to walk the storefront windows and skate downtown. For me, it has always been a happy time of memories,” she said.
In the meantime, those on her “nice list” will be receiving their glammed-up gift boxes of crack on their doorstep over the course of the month.
It is her version of Christmas cheer.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s Eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
