Strawberry Jelly Rolls

This was the first thing I made in my Aruban kitchen this trip that I turned on the oven for and they were absolutely worth it.

The smell of bread in the oven, cinnamon and sugar, butter and jelly, made our little Caribbean house smell like a bakery and was worth heating the joint up for.

If you do it my way, this is a 15-minute recipe from start to finish, including baking time and the dishes.

There’s no dishwasher here (other than yours truly) so those need to be kept to a minimum, too.

I used white dinner rolls as a major shortcut. Of course, you’re free to make your own bread dough, make and bake rolls, and then use said rolls for this recipe. But clearly I wouldn’t do that on vacation or probably ever.

It’s enough that I cook three squares a day, and I don’t mind, but bread-making from scratch isn’t ever happening in an un-airconditioned kitchen.

They’re a snap to make. Just beat a couple eggs, make a cinnamon-sugar mixture, poke holes in a half dozen dinner rolls with your fingers and dredge them through the egg and cinnamon-sugar, fill with jelly, add a couple pats of butter to the pan and bake. Done.

While baking, the butter and cinnamon-sugar creates this little glaze at the bottom of the pan that’s finger-lickin’ good.

And did I mention how much I love jelly? There’s nothing worse than a skimpy-on-the-jelly jelly roll and I made sure these were no where near skimpy.

When I walked into the home office with the tray of these where Scott was working, he exclaimed, Ohmygawdbabe what did you make?!

He told me he only wanted one because he was going to be getting into a swimsuit in a few minutes and he took his one little roll from the tray.

Apparently men think about jelly rolls and how that may impact their own jelly roll prior to getting into swimsuits.

Then as he was walking out the door 10 minutes later with Skylar to take her to the pool, he said, “Hey babe, do you think you could wrap up a few of those rolls for Skylar and I because they’re amazing.”

I assure you this is the best ever use of white dinner rolls and no one will suspect that you didn’t make elaborate pastries from scratch.

Don’t you just want to tear into all that jelly? I did.

[print_this]

Strawberry Jelly Rolls

Makes 6 rolls – double the recipe and bake in a 9-by-13-inch pan if preferred (use 3 eggs rather than 4, if doubling)

2 large eggs, beaten

1/3 cup granulated sugar + 2 tablespoons for sprinkling

2 teaspoons cinnamon

6 small white dinner rolls

12 tablespoons+ strawberry jelly or jam (about 2 tablespoons per roll)

1/4 cup butter, diced into about 6 cubes (half of one stick)

Preheat oven to 375F, line a 9-by-9-inch pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.

In a small bowl, lightly beat two eggs with a fork; set aside. In another small bowl, combine 1/3 cup sugar, cinnamon, and stir to combine; set aside.

With your thumb or finger, gently break the top surface of one roll, going about 1-inch deep and 1-inch wide. Don’t actually remove any bread, don’t “core” it; just open it up. Dip the bread in the egg, allowing some egg to enter the hollowed out part; let it soak into the interior. Dip and dredge the roll through the cinnamon-sugar mixture and place in prepared pan. Repeat with the other 5 rolls. Rolls will be nearly touching or touching each other in the pan depending on size; stagger them if necessary to avoid touching too much so they crisp up on the edges.

After all the rolls have been dipped into the egg, coated cinnamon-and-sugared, and in the pan, spoon about 2 tablespoons of jelly into the hole of each roll; be generous (use your favorite jelly such as raspberry, blueberry, lemon, or cherry). Add a final dusting of about 2 tablespoons granulated sugar over the tops of the rolls, distributed evenly. Place cubed butter pieces in the bottom of the pan in open spaces; it’s okay if it touches rolls since it will melt and ultimately touch them.

Bake for 9 to 10 minutes, or until rolls are golden. Butter will have melted and combined with excess cinnamon-sugar mixture and it will be bubbling and have thickened. Allow to cool and serve immediately, taking care not to miss any of the buttery cinnamon-sugar sauce on the bottom of the pan. Rolls are best fresh, but will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

[/print_this]

Related Recipes:

Cinnamon Sugar Crust Cream Cheese and Jelly Danish Squares – uses one of my favorite shortcuts

Cinnamon Bun Pie – an easy shortcut makes these some of my favorite cinnamon rolls

Caramel Peanut Butter & Jelly Bars (GF with Vegan adaptation) – I will always love PB & J in any form

Cranberry & Orange Ginger Mango Chutney – jelly-like and so good

Hot Pepper Jelly (vegan, GF)

Stovetop Hot Pepper Jelly (vegan, GF)

Do you like jelly?

I love condiments, sauces, chutneys, dips and spreads of all types and jelly is no exception; sweet or savory. And all of it applied in abundance; the more, the merrier.

If you have any good shortcut-containing recipes, or any great recipes that use jelly, feel free to link them up.

The winner of the Bella Bars Giveaway is Laura (Tutti Dolci)

Have a great week!