The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 9: Tortilla Cinnamon Rolls
Inside: Need a quick snack that can double as dessert? You’ll like this easy cinnamon roll-like recipe that takes only five ingredients and five minutes to bake.
Okay here is my disclaimer. These don’t taste “exactly like cinnamon rolls.” But they taste a lot like them. What’s missing is the soft yeasty bread quality of the real McCoy. But the buttery-cinnamon-nut flavor is all there.
If you’ve ever made cinnamon rolls, you know how much work it takes. And if you’re on a special diet, such as low carb, they’re off limits. The beauty of these is that you can use low carb tortillas, which I do, and they taste great!
I can honestly say that when I eat these, I don’t feel deprived!
What else I love about this recipe is the time factor–five minutes to prepare, five minutes to bake. In fact, it will take more time to preheat your oven than the prep and baking time combined.
Have I convinced you yet? I’m envisioning a lot of head nodding going on right this minute.
So let’s get to that recipe!
- 1 10-inch tortilla (I use Mission Carb Balance Whole Wheat Tortillas)
- 1 tablespoon of butter, slightly melted
- 1½ tablespoons of cinnamon sugar (recipe below or use your favorite blend)
- 2 tablespoons of chopped pecans (or walnuts)
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Make a small batch of cinnamon sugar: ¼ cup of sugar or sweetener to 1½ teaspoons of cinnamon and mix well, saving the excess for other recipes. Set aside.
- Spread butter over the entire tortilla.
- Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar evenly over the tortilla, covering the whole tortilla.
- Next sprinkle chopped pecans over the tortilla.
- Roll up the tortilla.
- Slice into 6 or 7 pieces, approximately an inch long.
- Place on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and bake 5 minutes.
- Enjoy!
Notes: These are best eaten warm from the oven. For leftover rolls, I suggest a very brief pop in the microwave–maybe ten to twenty seconds. You might also experiment drizzling icing over the rolls, though I have never tried this.
Try these now or in the new year. They really are so simple to make and so good!
Do you have a favorite quick snack? Tell us about it in the comments.
Tomorrow, The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 10: Simple Ornaments
Related posts:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 1: A Simple Song
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: Spiced Nuts
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 3: Our Prim Christmas Tree Forest
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 4: A Truly Southern Christmas
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Seasonal Symbols and Traditions
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: My Top Ten Christmas Movie Picks
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 7: Cutest. Sleigh. Ever.
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 8: Spending Christmas with Charlie
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 8: Spending Christmas with Charlie
Inside: Fifty-two years ago A Charlie Brown Christmas broke many rules on the way to its debut–and went on to become one of the most beloved Christmas shows, pointing viewers to the real reason for the season.
A Charlie Brown Christmas airs tonight on ABC, but it’s surprising it even made it into the television lineup fifty-two years ago. Looking behind the scenes at the making of the special, Charles Schulz and Bill Melendez encountered many problems in creating this endearing classic.
To start with, the script broke tradition from the standard Christmas programs based on classic literature and Christmas songs by telling an original story.
Coca-Cola, the sponsor of the special, gave Melendez six months to produce it with a budget of $76,000. Compare that to How the Grinch Stole Christmas, which had a budget of $300,000 the following year.
Back then it was a common practice for half-hour comedies to have canned laughter or a studio audience. Charles Schulz objected to the laugh track and got his way.
To give the show authenticity, Schulz and Melendez cast ordinary children instead of voice actors for certain roles, which created problems when some of the children couldn’t read the script. Ultimately Melendez fed them the lines.
Three weeks before the show was due to air, the network watched the screening and hated it. They felt the pacing was too slow and the story lacked energy. They left the meeting vowing there would be no specials in the future. But when the program finally aired, 15 million households tuned in–about 50 percent of homes which owned televisions were watching. Suddenly the network had a change of heart. (Imagine that.)
Sometimes you have to break the rules of conventional wisdom and take a risk. You might just create a future classic!
Note: Mom sent me one of her daily devotionals that mentioned a subtle symbol in A Charlie Brown Christmas that most people miss. I’ve included the link here for the curious.
Do you have a favorite Christmas special? Tell us about it in the comments.
Tomorrow, The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 9: Tortilla Cinnamon Rolls
Related posts:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 1: A Simple Song
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: Spiced Nuts
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 3: Our Prim Christmas Tree Forest
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 4: A Truly Southern Christmas
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Seasonal Symbols and Traditions
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: My Top Ten Christmas Movie Picks
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 7: Cutest. Sleigh. Ever.
Inside: Crafters, time to lift that glue gun from its holster and make some adorable stocking stuffers. Or just admire the creativity of whoever thought this up. Cutest. Sleigh. Ever.
Short post today, my friends! I’ve got that making and baking thing to do. Add cleaning to the list, too. Trying to embrace the latter with a little Bing and maybe a little Judy Garland and even Eartha Kit (“Santa Baby”). I love the classic Christmas tunes I grew up hearing!
Anyway. . . Last year I remember walking into Hub’s office and finding this sweet (pun intended) little candy sleigh on his desk. Our pastor’s grandkids had put these together and handed them out to staff. Such a creative idea and good way to teach giving to your kids. (Kudos to Tamara for being a cool mom!)
This little sleigh is so cute that I needed to show it off. Now I’ll be the first one to admit I have not tried this myself, but it looks easy to assemble and make a half dozen or so. Upon taking it apart–someone had to eat it because Mike is strict with his diet (sometimes you just have to take one for the team)–runners are candy canes glued to the bottom of the base of the sleigh–a Kit-Kat. The presents are six assorted miniature Hershey bars. These are stacked pyramid style on top of the Kit-Kat and held together with a light touch from a glue gun and tied with a bright red-and-white striped string, first going up and down and then side to side. A simple miniature bow tops off the sleigh.
Folks, it’s getting down to the wire, so this might be one of those projects you file away for Christmas 2018. Did I just say that–Christmas 2018? Let’s not even think that far ahead and just concentrate on this year first–but you know what I mean.
Happy Day 7 of the 12 Posts of Christmas!
P.S. Credit goes to Emily, my daughter, for taking this picture and including it in her picture of the day challenge from last year.
What are your favorite stocking stuffers? Tells us about it in the comments.
Tomorrow, The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 8: Spending Christmas with Charlie
Related posts:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 1: A Simple Song
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: Spiced Nuts
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 3: Our Prim Christmas Tree Forest
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 4: A Truly Southern Christmas
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Seasonal Symbols and Traditions
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: My Top Ten Christmas Movie Picks
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 6: My Top Ten Christmas Movie Picks
Inside: You might say I’m a Christmas movie enthusiast. Every year the same–old favorites, new selections, classics. A steady diet of yuletide viewing. Here are my top ten picks. See if they make your own list.
*This post contains affiliate links.
I love a good Christmas movie! Often I’ll put a DVD on while I’m baking cookies or wrapping presents. Or writing posts. (I’m watching number eight as I type.)
Before we get to the list, a word about what you won’t find here. I’m not including television shows or cartoons, so no Rudolph or Grinch or Charlie Brown. (Not to worry, Charlie B. will make an appearance in these posts in a couple of days.) While I’m fond of these shows and catch them every year, I’m keeping this strictly to movies.
Also, most of these can be found in one of those large bins in stores like Walmart or other holiday displays, but for the rarer movies I’ll provide a link for more information. Here’s my list, starting with number ten and counting down to my all-time favorite.
10) Jingle All the Way. What parent hasn’t been on a frantic search to find the hot toy of the season? A flick with Arnold and Sinbad makes for great comedic chemistry and pretty much any line Arnold delivers is funny with that accent. It’s a cute story and good to have playing in the background while finishing up some last-minute Christmas task.
9) Elf. While I’m not a huge Will Ferrell fan, he does an amazing job of playing the wide-eyed, idealistic elf named Buddy, and it’s a fun story to watch–I’m picturing Buddy sitting on Papa Elf’s (Bob Newhart’s) lap. Always a treat to see Bob Newhart with his dry humor.
8) Home Alone. What happens when an eight-year-old boy is inadvertently left home alone during Christmas vacation and has to defend his house from a couple of burglars? I’m guessing most of you know, as this is a modern classic. Still, it’s fun to revisit. And even the small role John Candy has in the movie makes it all the better.
7) A Christmas Story. Poor Ralphie! All he wants is a genuine Red Ryder 200-shot Carbine Action Air Rifle, and it seems like none of the grownups around him think he should have it. If you’re like me you immediately recite the line–“You’ll shoot your eye out!” There is a lot to love about this movie. I like being transported back to 1940s Indiana, and the narrator enhances the telling of the story. Definitely worth viewing annually.
6) Christmas with the Kranks. We watched this when it first came out, and I liked it then, but when I watched it last year, I saw it in a new light. The difference? The first time our daughter was in high school. Last year’s viewing had me laughing at age-related things and the empty nester dilemma. Think I’m going to hunt it down on Prime or Netflix for another look.
5) Joyeux Noel. Turning to serious movies, my next choice is about the Christmas Eve truce during World War I. It’s quite moving–powerful, really. If you were following the comments from 12 Posts, Day 1, Cheryl Carter (aka Calen) had a link to a commercial that captures the event in a nutshell. Grab a hankie first. You’ll need it. And keep a box of tissues beside you when watching this film.
4) The Christmas Wish. I caught this for the first time last year, and it’s one of those movies that has stayed with me. It’s a mystery set during the Christmas season. A young business man (Neil Patrick Harris) comes home to settle his recently deceased grandfather’s business affairs and discovers some disturbing entries from his grandfather’s personal papers. Signs seem to point to his grandfather secretly taking up with another woman all the while playing the devoted husband. The young man had been raised by his grandparents because his mother and father had been killed in a car accident when he was small, which makes it all the more disturbing as he tries to keep the information from his grandmother, played by Debbie Reynolds. Quietly powerful.
3) The Nativity Story. Every year at our Christmas Eve gathering one of my family members (usually Emily) reads the Christmas story from the Bible, a tradition important to us. I like to watch this movie because it brings home the reason for the season in the same way. I highly recommend making the Christmas story a central part of your celebration, and this movie is a great place to start.
2) A Christmas Carol. What’s not to love? Scary ghost stories, a tale of redemption, Christmas in old London town. This story is endearing and has been adapted so many, many times I can’t begin to name them all. How many sitcoms have done some riff on this story over the years? Of the film versions, I am fond of all of them, including the Alastair Sim black-and-white version, but if I have to choose my favorite, it would be George C. Scott in the title role. I do manage to catch this every year in one form or another. I might
give Patrick Stewart’s Scrooge another look this year. Incidentally, if you have time to sneak off to the movies, give the new movie The Man Who Invented Christmas a try. I absolutely loved it! (Update: This movie is no longer in theaters, but you can purchase it.)
1) It’s a Wonderful Life. This movie doubles as both my top Christmas movie as well as my number one deserted island pick. You know the question–“If you were stuck on a deserted island and could have only one movie, what would it be?” So much to love about it–for one, Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed. Another, a great plot. It’s the quintessential “everyman” story, and a slice of Americana all rolled up together. It’s full of symbolism and makes you feel good. What else can I say?
So there you have it. My list. I’ll be watching some of these this week while I finish wrapping presents and make my spiced nuts. A perfect way to mark the season as we continue our countdown to Christmas!
What are some of your favorite Christmas movies? Tell us about it in the comments.
Tomorrow, The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 7: Cutest. Sleigh. Ever.
Related posts:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 1: A Simple Song
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: Spiced Nuts
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 3: Our Prim Christmas Tree Forest
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 4: A Truly Southern Christmas
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 5: Seasonal Symbols and Traditions