Resurrection rolls, which can also be called empty tomb rolls, are the perfect treat to teach your kids the true meaning of Easter! Each ingredient and step of the process symbolizes a part of the true Easter story, full of meaning! This is a great tradition to start with your kids. You can find all of my meaningful holy week recipes for kids here. Today, let’s take a look at the resurrection roll recipe and story.
Ingredients Needed To Make Resurrection Rolls:
All of the ingredients in the empty tomb rolls have symbolism behind them! Let’s check out what you need to get started.
- Canned Crescent Rolls (I picked up Annie’s organic, but I have used Pillsbury in the past as well)
- 3 Tbs of Butter
- Small bowl of Cinnamon/Sugar Mixture (3 Tbs sugar + 1 Tbs cinnamon)
- 8 Large Marshmallows (You will need as many marshmallows as the number of crescent rolls you have. 8 is typical. Also, you just want normal large marshmallows, not those crazy giant ones they’re selling these days.)
Other Supplies Needed For Empty Tomb Rolls:
- Parchment paper
- Toothpicks
Having these things is going to make the process way less messy for you today! 😉
Many Ways To Make Resurrection Rolls
This post goes through how to make resurrection rolls with canned crescent rolls, but I have several different versions of empty tomb rolls you can check out here.
Printable Recipe With Meaning
I love having a printable to do activities like this with my kids so I can be screen free, ad free, and just have what I need in that moment.
I have a brand new printable that includes all the meaning behind the resurrection rolls and a script of what to tell your kids as you go as well as how to make the rolls. It also comes with a recipe card and a little place card to display next to your completed rolls!
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The Resurrection Rolls story download is included in my new cookbook for families– !
If you want to buy just the Resurrection Rolls recipe with the story, wish granted! I do offer it separately from my cookbook for just $2.
Get your resurrection roll download here!
How To Make Resurrection Rolls:
Before beginning, preheat your oven to 350°F. Also, cover your pan in parchment paper or aluminum foil. (Because believe-you-me… those melted marshmallows are going to make some kind of a mess if you don’t!) 😉
First, melt your butter in a small dish. In another dish, mix your cinnamon and sugar.
You can have the kids stir this while you explain the symbolism to them. These stand for the spices that were used to prepare bodies for burial in Jesus’ time.
When you’re butter and sugar cinnamon mixture are ready, prepare your marshmallow and get your crescent rolls out of the can.
The least messy way we have found to do this is to use a toothpick for swirling the marshmallows.
Tell your children something like this (The Easter story you tell will vary depending on the age of the children you’re working with.)
“Jesus was completely perfect and pure. He never sinned or did anything wrong. Even so, there were some people who didn’t like him because he said he was God. The crucified him, and he died on the cross on Good Friday. It was very sad. A man named Joseph took his body down from the cross.”
Give them each a marshmallow. Then tell them:
“This marshmallow represents the body of Jesus. It is white because Jesus was pure from sin. Back during Jesus’ time, they prepared bodies for burial by putting special oils and spices on the body. The butter and the cinnamon-sugar represent these oils and spices.”
Have them dip the marshmallow first in the melted butter, and roll it around.
Then, roll it in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
Now prepare the children to wrap the marshmallow into the crescent roll. You can say…
“Next, they wrapped Jesus’ body in a white cloth, kinda like a mummy. We’re going to wrap up our marshmallows like Jesus’ body was wrapped in cloth.”
Tell the kids to wrap them well and pinch them closed where the dough meets.
When you’re finished rolling them, they look like a ball of dough, but we all know there’s a marshmallow hidden inside.
Spread them out on the cookie sheet that you already lined with parchment paper.
Now, place your rolls in the oven, and tell your kids:
“Then, they placed Jesus’ body in a tomb cut in stone. It was kind of like a cave. They sealed it with a big heavy rock so that no one could get in, and placed soldiers in front of the tomb to guard it!”
Bake the rolls for 10 to 12 minutes until they are golden brown. Before removing them from the oven, tell your kids:
“Jesus was in the tomb for 3 days, and then he rose from the dead!”
Remove the resurrection rolls from your oven. Some of the melted marshmallow probably escaped, but that’s ok because you used parchment paper. 😉
Allow the rolls to cool for about 10 minutes before moving on.
Now, you cut the roll in half to reveal that it’s empty inside! Then you tell your kids:
“When Jesus rose from the dead on the third day, the tomb was empty, just like our rolls are empty inside! It’s just like an empty tomb!”
Now, eat your resurrection rolls! Tell your kids:
“These rolls are sweet, just like the resurrection story! Jesus died to save us from our sins. He loves you very much!”
Don’t Forget Your Printable!
Working from my resurrection roll printable pack is really going to ease this process for your family! You can grab your instant download now for just $2.
We have also made them out of peeps before, which makes for rainbow colors inside of your empty tomb! Check out the full directions for rainbow resurrection rolls here.
Find My Lenten Resources For Kids here
Silly rabbit! Easter is for Jesus!!!
You can find all of my Christ-centered resources for Easter here.
Make it about the lamb, not the bunny!
Print Recipe
Resurrection Rolls Recipe
Resurrection rolls are fun, easy, and yummy! They resemble cinnamon rolls. We like to bake them on Holy Saturday and eat them for breakfast on Easter morning. (This printable recipe only features the actual recipe. Please refer to the original post for how to incorporate the Easter story while making the recipe with our family.)
Cook Time11 minutes mins
Cooling Time10 minutes mins
Course: Snack
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Easter, Rolls
Servings: 8 rolls
Author: Lacy
Equipment
Parchment Paper or aluminum foil
Ingredients
- 1 can Canned Crescent Rolls
- 3 Tbs Butter
- Small bowl of Cinnamon/Sugar Mixture (3 Tbs sugar + 1 Tbs cinnamon)
- 8 Large Marshmallows or the number of crescent rolls you have
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and cover your pan in parchment paper or aluminum foil.
Melt your butter.
Dip each marshmallow in the melted butter and cover it completely.
Immediately roll each marshmallow in the cinnamon-sugar mixture after covering it in butter.
Place the marshmallows on the crescent rolls, and wrap them up. Pinch all the seams shut as well as possible. They will look like dough balls when you’re finished.
Place your rolls in the oven and bake for 10 to 12 minutes until they are golden brown.
Allow the rolls to cool for about 10 minutes after removing them from the oven.
Cut the roll in half to reveal that it’s empty inside!
