crescent rolls | Roaming Rosie

I’ve seen Easter Resurrection Rolls done a lot of different ways.

They’ve been made out of cookies, biscuits, crescent rolls…

And when I decided to make some with my girls this year, I went with crescent rolls for a couple of reasons. For one, I like the taste. They also pair well with cinnamon. And I felt they were a better representation of the cloth that Christ was wrapped in.

The point of the resurrection rolls is to demonstrate to kids how Jesus was buried in the tomb, but when they opened the tomb, it was empty because He had risen. And the marshmallow melts while it bakes, but not until it gives the rolls support so the dough doesn’t flatten. Then the rolls are empty inside.

So, the marshmallow represents Jesus, rolling it in the butter and the cinnamon sugar mixture represents the oils and spices that were used to preserve dead bodies back in His day, and the roll represents the tomb.

Though, I kinda explained it as the rolls representing the cloth that Jesus was wrapped in. Before we baked it. Then the cooked rolls were the tomb which was empty.

It’s not an exact science.

But it is an incredibly delicious way to incorporate Jesus’ story into some Easter baking!

There are only a few ingredients, so it’s an easy baking project to throw together in between other activities.

Rolling the marshmallow in melted butter and spices and wrapping it in dough CAN be a tad messy – but that’s what makes it interesting and fun.

I used a fork to turn it in the butter and scoop it into the cinnamon, but you still gotta get in there with your fingers to wrap it in the dough.

Try pinching shut all the openings as best you can, but don’t worry if you miss a few.

Even if the rolls deflate a little, they’re still all hollow inside once baked.

Oh, and I sprinkled our extra cinnamon sugar over the rolls before baking. It adds a nice touch.

Technically, I should have used two pans.

I didn’t feel like it.

Some of our rolls stuck together, but that really wasn’t a big deal.

A few leaked melted marshmallow all over.

Again: not a big deal.

But you know what WAS a big deal? The awesome taste.

Seriously. These things did not hang around long.

And, of course, to go along with this project, we also read a book about the Easter Story.

Here’s one more fun graphic, which shows all the steps together:

Easter Resurrection Rolls

Ingredients:

2 cans (8 rolls each) crescent rolls
16 large marshmallows
4 tablespoons butter, melted but cooled
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

To assemble the resurrection rolls, lay out the crescent rolls and separate them.

In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon.

Dip a marshmallow in the melted butter, rolling it around to cover it completely. (The butter can be warm but not very hot. You don’t want to melt the marshmallow.)

Then roll the buttered marshmallow in the cinnamon and sugar mix.

Place the cinnamon marshmallow in the center of a roll and wrap the dough around it, sealing any openings.

Put the rolls on a baking pan with raised sides, sprinkle with any extra cinnamon and sugar if desired, and bake according to package directions for the rolls.

Allow the rolls to cool on a wire rack before serving to children. Remember that the melted marshmallow inside will be very hot when they first emerge from the oven.

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To print the PDF of the recipe, click here:

Easter Resurrection Rolls

Enjoy!

And check out our Resurrection Garden, too:

I saw these Octopus Dinner Rolls in a magazine (can’t remember which one) and thought they’d be fun to tackle with my girls.

They do take a few minutes to shape, but they’re pretty easy to make – and especially fun to eat!

I used crescent rolls that had a butter flavor in them already, but if yours don’t (or you’re making your own dough), you can always wrap up a small chunk of butter inside the “head.”

The process of turning these triangles into an octopus is surprisingly easy: cut the end opposite the point into 8 pieces. Then tuck the pointed end under and bunch it up into a ball. Voila!

I asked the girls to help me arrange the myriad legs, but they were really much more interested in adding the eyes.

My 4yo even used the tweezers from her bug collecting kit to place them on. (Don’t worry – we washed them first!)

Here they are, all ready to bake.

You should make sure the legs aren’t touching, but the dough doesn’t spread much during baking, so they can be pretty close.

Also, I baked one tray the full recommended baking time on the package (see above photo) and the other tray a few minutes less (see below).

Undercooking them slightly ensures that the tips don’t brown, but the head will be a bit underdone. Now, that didn’t bother me or my girls at all – but then, neither did the crunchy legs of the fully cooked ones.

The crispy tips didn’t present a problem for us in the least, so really, how long you decide to bake them is up to your personal preference.

And if you want to shape them ahead of time, you can put the octopus-filled, parchment-lined trays in the fridge until you’re ready to bake them. Such as on Halloween. :)