easter resurrection rolls

I’ve been wanting to make these rolls with Kennedy for a couple years and finally did so! I saw another blogger post about them yesterday – Becca Whittengill – and I loved how easily she broke it down for others to replicate! Kennedy and I made ours this morning while Ryan read the Scriptures. It was a great visual!

Ingredients: 

• 8 Marshmallows
• 1 Package of 8 Crescent Rolls
• Butter
• Cinnamon
• Sugar

Additional Materials: 

• One large muffin tin OR two small ones (You’ll need room for 8 rolls)
• Non-stick cooking spray

Resurrection Rolls Story Tips: 

• I prefer to have everything out and ready to go in advance before the kids sit down. This helps reduce the wait time for little ones, so they’re more likely to sit and pay attention without all the wiggles.

• I also prefer to make one resurrection roll myself FIRST while I tell the story and the kids watch (up until the point where the first roll goes in the pan). This way the kids are paying attention to the resurrection rolls story, not getting distracted trying to lick the cinnamon sugar.

• I included the shortened version of the Resurrection Rolls story below so you can easily do this recipe with wiggly little ones with short attention spans. If you have older kids and prefer to read the Easter story straight from the Bible before you begin, that’s great! The actual Bible story can be found in Luke 23-24.

• BUT if you are reading the Easter story straight from the Bible to little ones, I would definitely recommend a good children’s Bible. We personally love this Bible storybook for reading to toddlers & The Beginner’s Bible for reading to preschool or early elementary aged children.

Get Everything Ready to Go Before You Begin

• Turn oven to 375°
• Melt the butter 15-20 seconds
• Mix cinnamon and sugar together in one bowl (equal parts, or a bit more sugar)
• Set ingredients out on the table
• Spray the muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray

1. Take One Marshmallow and Begin Explaining the Resurrection Rolls Story

Explain: The marshmallow represents Jesus: Pure, white, sinless and perfect.

Unfortunately, even though Jesus was perfect, there were people who hated him. They wanted him dead. So they crucified him on a cross and left him to die there.

Bible verses: Luke 23:1-49

2. Roll the Marshmallow in the Melted Butter, then in the Cinnamon Sugar Mixture

Explain: Jesus’s friends and family were very sad when Jesus died. They loved him. They wanted him to be alive. They were sad and confused.

But what Jesus’s disciples didn’t know what that Jesus didn’t JUST die. He also took all of our sins (the bad things we do) upon himself. He took our punishment so we wouldn’t have to!

See how the cinnamon looks dirty on Jesus’s body? The cinnamon represents our sin that Jesus took away when he died.

Bible verses: Romans 5:8, 1 Peter 2:24, Isaiah 53:5, 1 Corinthians 15:3

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3. Carefully Wrap the Marshmallow in a Crescent Roll, Carefully Sealing Every Seam.

Explain: Jesus’s friends and family didn’t know this, though. They thought he was just dead. So they buried him in a tomb and closed the door tight with a huge rock so no one could get in or out.

This crescent roll represents Jesus’s tomb. Can you see the marshmallow in there? You can’t, because the tomb is sealed up tightly. Nothing can get in or out.

Bible verses: Luke 23:50-56

4. Place Resurrection Rolls in Muffin Tin; Invite Kids to Make Remaining Rolls.

Explain: After Jesus’s friends buried his body in the tomb, they left and went home for the night because it was getting late.

Now, would you like to help me make the rest of this resurrection rolls recipe?

*yummy hint: we brushed the remaining butter over the rolls and sprinkled the cinnamon sugar over them to make them even tastier out of the oven! they were so good!

5. Cook til Browned (see package directions). Remove from Oven. Continue Resurrection Rolls Story while Rolls are Cooling.

Explain: Three days later, some of Jesus’s friends and family went back to his tomb. They wanted to put oil and spices on his body to make it smell better and not get too stinky. But, when they came to his tomb, they saw the most incredible thing! Do you know what it was?

(Cut the roll open – the marshmallow should be gone)

The tomb was empty! Jesus came back from the dead and he’s still alive today, watching over us and helping take care of us from Heaven!

Bible verses: Luke 24:1-12, Luke 22:69, John 14:3