Easter cinnamon rolls

This is a sponsored post by Challenge Butter, but the text and opinions are all mine. Thank you for supporting brands that make Kylee's Kitchen possible!

Obviously, Easter will look very different for many people this year. We won't be going to church. We won't all be congregating together under one roof for an Easter dinner. There won't be any Easter egg hunts...

I know it will be especially hard for children who already may be a little confused about the current situation. That's why I recommend making it as fun as possible by trying out something new.

I always loved making cinnamon rolls when I was a little girl. We only made them on rare special occasions. So I channeled those memories into a fun Easter breakfast idea.

I turned store-bought cinnamon rolls into a canvas for Easter art! I wanted to make something that was easy enough for children to help with in the kitchen, but also give them a creative outlet and something to focus their energy on.

I thought of several ways to make cinnamon rolls into Easter art, and I'm going to share them with you here. However, don't let these ideas limit you. I'd love to see other cinnamon roll art creations by your family.

I topped my cinnamon rolls with homemade cream cheese frosting because it's thicker than the frosting provided in the cinnamon roll packs, and I thought it would act as a better canvas for my creations. It's perfectly fine if you go a different route and not use this frosting recipe (obviously it will be delicious no matter what), but I can't guarantee your creations will stick as well. (Side note: This cream cheese frosting recipe isn't the same recipe I'd use for cupcakes or cakes—it's not quite as stiff)

I used Challenge cream cheese for the frosting. I like that the company uses family-owned dairies, and they pride themselves on using the freshest products possible.

Cinnamon roll cream cheese frosting
Ingredients

• 8 ounces Challenge cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup Challenge butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups powdered sugar (240 grams) add up to 1 additional cup if too runny

Directions

1. Beat cream cheese and butter until smooth.
2. Mix in vanilla extract and salt.
3. Slowly add powdered sugar to bowl and beat until it's incorporate.

Bird's Nest Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients

• 1 package of your favorite cinnamon rolls
• 1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut
• 1 teaspoon cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup to 1 cup of cinnamon roll cream cheese frosting
• Egg-shaped candies for decoration

Directions

1. Bake cinnamon rolls according to package instructions and allow to cool.
2. While cinnamon rolls are cooling, combine coconut and cocoa powder.
3. Spread cream cheese frosting onto cinnamon rolls. The frosting layer should be about 1/2 inch thick.
4. Sprinkle shredded coconut onto cinnamon rolls. You want the outside edges to be throughly covered so it resembles a nest.
5. Add egg-shaped candies to the center of the cinnamon roll.

Bunny Butt Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients

• 1 package of your favorite cinnamon rolls
• 1/2 cup to 1 cup of cinnamon roll cream cheese frosting
• 2 Tablespoons white chocolate chips
• Large marshmallows
• Miniature marshmallows
• Pink circle sprinkles
• 1 Tablespoon shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup crushed Oreos

Directions

1. Bake cinnamon rolls according to package instructions and allow to cool.
2. Spread cream cheese frosting onto cinnamon rolls. The frosting layer should be about 1/2 inch thick.
3. Melt the white chocolate chips
4. Stick 1 large marshmallow into cream cheese frosting. This is the bunny's butt.
5. Dip both ends of 1 mini marshmallow into white chocolate. Sprinkle one end with shredded coconut and then place the other end on top of the large marshmallow using the melted white chocolate like glue. This is the bunny's tail.
6. Cut 1 mini marshmallow in half. Use a toothpick to spread a thin layer of white chocolate onto marshmallow and carefully place 3 pink sprinkles onto white chocolate. Stick the marshmallow pieces below the big marshmallow on either side of it. These are the bunny's feet.
7. Sprinkle crushed up Oreo onto cream cheese frosting around your marshmallow bunny so it looks like dirt.