Teach your children the real meaning of Easter with this easy Resurrection Rolls story and recipe (with Bible verses!)
Have you ever made Resurrection Rolls before? Maybe you have heard them called Empty Tomb Rolls. I had never even heard of either of them until last year.
I was online looking for Easy Christian Easter Crafts for Sunday School and Home when I stumbled across this easy Resurrection Rolls recipe.
Not only did it look easy and yummy, but this Empty Tomb Rolls story also looked like a great way to teach kids the real meaning of Easter. I couldn’t wait to try these Easter Resurrection Rolls!
So, we tried it out and… it did not disappoint! Our whole family gobbled up every last resurrection crescent roll!
Plus, we had a great discussion about Jesus’s death and resurrection, and I even got a few adorable home videos I could watch again and again.
If you have young children at home, this is definitely an easy resurrection rolls recipe you will want to try. I’d say it would probably work best for children between the ages of 3 and 13.
Children younger than 3 would likely enjoy eating the empty tomb rolls, but they aren’t likely to understand the resurrection rolls story.
Children older than 13 would also enjoy eating the rolls, but they might think they’re “too cool” for simple object lessons. 🙂
(But if you have a teen and a younger child, this easy resurrection rolls recipe can be prepared by a teen willing to teach the Empty Tomb Rolls story to the smaller child ) … 🙂
Tip: Use This Printable Resurrection Rolls Recipe to Help!
You can find all the instructions you need to make your own easy Resurrection Rolls (complete with Bible verses and instructions!) below.
BUT if you prefer a printable version to make things easy on yourself (so you don’t get cinnamon sugar all over your phone…)
I created a Resurrection Rolls Story Printable that has alllll the steps, all the verses… everything you need.
Simply enter your name and email in the box below, and I’ll send it your way, so you have it right on hand when you’re ready to teach this empty tomb rolls story!
Easy Resurrection Rolls Story and Recipe Instructions
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 to the resurrection rolls lesson 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, and this NIV Adventure Bible for reading with children ages 8-12 (or so).
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase, I may make a small commission at no additional cost to you. This helps cover the cost of running this site and allows me to help provide for my family. Thank you!
1. 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
2. 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 was 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
3. Carefully Wrap the Marshmallow in a Resurrection 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 resurrection 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 Crescent 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?
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
6. Eat and Enjoy!
The kids had such a great time making this Resurrection Rolls recipe last year that we had to make them again this year too. If you decide to make them with your family, hopefully your family will love them just as much! Enjoy!
Don’t Forget Your Printable Resurrection Rolls Lesson Instructions!
Ready to teach the Empty Tomb Rolls lesson with your kids?
Don’t forget to grab your Resurrection Rolls Story Printable so you have everything you need right at hand when you’re ready to get started!
It has all the instructions, materials list, Bible verses, etc… and it won’t result in you ruining your phone with cinnamon sugar!
Simply enter your name and email in the box below, and I’ll send it your way so you have it right on hand when you’re ready to teach this empty tomb rolls story.
Are you planning to use the Resurrection Rolls Lesson to make the empty tomb rolls? Do you have another homemade resurrection rolls recipe?
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What a wonderful idea. I am going to do this with my 4 year old grandaughter-adoped daughter. Thank you for sharing
You’re welcome!
thank you so much for sharing this. we made it countless times with parishes my husband pastored. Now at a new parish, want to do it with the kids, yours is perfect, is there a way can get this printer friendly?
That is a fantastic idea, but unfortunately, not at the minute… It’s pretty simple though, thankfully!
Hey, Paula! Ended up making a printable version after all since that’s such a great idea. It’s right in the post! Thanks! <3
Thank you. This will be a blessing to our church’s children’s dance group!
Brittany, Hi I gave my e-mail but I have not received an e-mail back with the printable version, is something else I have to do to get it?
I didn’t receive the email either.
Thanks for letting me know! I just sent you an email!
I have also entered my email address (twice!) but have not received an email. Is it possible to send me one as well?
Absolutely! Sending now. 🙂
I would love to have a printable copy of the resurrection rolls and story. Thank you for putting this together and sharing it with others.
Hi, Tammy! There’s a box right in the post now! Just enter your name and email, and I’ll send it your way!
I received the email with the link to the Resurrection Rolls printable, but when
I clicked on the link, it went to a blank page…
Oh no! I’m sorry about that. I’m sending you an email with the direct link now!
I have been making resurrection rolls for years. We love them so much. I was surprised to see that your items represent things differently than I was taught.
In my version the butter and cinnamon and sugar are the oils and spices used to embalm the body. The dough is the clothing that he left behind and the oven is the tomb.
Just thought I’d throw out a different version.
Yeah, we do them that way too! There are just more wonderful things to symbolize than steps to make the rolls lol!
Thank you so very much. I’m a Sunday school teacher and have been coming up with creative ways to teach them through lessons I’m recording. This is awesome for an object lesson for this Sunday. Thank you so very much.
Enjoy! 🙂