Resurrection Rolls

Resurrection Rolls, a yummy way to share the Easter Story with Kids

Easter Sunday was last week, but I never got a chance to post this Resurrection Rolls recipe that we tried for the first time this year.  It's easy for kids to get Christmas and birth of our Savior story.  It's a bit more difficult for them to fully grasp his death on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday.  We often travel for Easter, but this year we stayed home, so I knew I wanted to give these Resurrection Rolls a try with my kids. 

I'm not sure where this recipe originated.  I've seen it referenced many times in several Christian family books/magazines.  I've heard other moms talk about making them with their kids or even having made them as kids.  Sometimes they are called "empty tomb rolls".  As you make them, you can explain the death and resurrection of Jesus in a way that kids may be better able to understand.

The recipe turned out perfect!  The kids loved making them with me in the kitchen, and they were amazed to see that their rolls were empty (hollow) when we ate them with our Easter breakfast.  They will definitely be one of our Easter morning traditions for as many years as the kids will want to help me make them!

Here's the recipe:
Resurrection Rolls:
1 can large and flaky crescent rolls (regular will work okay; just harder to work with)
8 large marshmallows
2 Tbsp melted butter
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 Tbsp sugar

1.  Mix together cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl.
2.  Place melted butter in a separate small bowl.
3.  Unroll and separate the crescent rolls.
4.  Take a marshmallow (Jesus after he died on the cross) and roll it in butter and then roll it in the cinnamon sugar mixture (the oils and spices used in his burial)

5.  Place the coated marshmallow in the top third of the triangular shaped piece of dough. 
6.  Wrap the skinny part over the marshmallow and roll the marshmallow towards the wide bottom part of the dough piece.

7.  Fold up the wide bottom piece of dough (kind of like a diaper) so that the marshmallow is fully wrapped in the dough  (Jesus all wrapped up) and place on a cookie sheet.

8.  Bake for 15-18 minutes at 375 until light golden brown.

The most amazing thing happens while they bake!  The marshmallow disappears!  The rolls will be hollow on the inside when you break them open.  The kids LOVED seeing this!  They thought the rolls would be all gooey like a smore.  They did not expect them to be all hollow.  Their surprise made a great discussion around the table as to the surprise that Jesus' friends must have felt when they went to His tomb on Sunday morning.

Resurrection Rolls - The Tomb is Empty!

The cinnamony sweet rolls were an excellent addition to our Easter morning brunch of hard cooked eggs, sausage links, and fresh pineapple.

What's your favorite traditional Easter recipe?