Heirloom apple rolls are one of my favorite recipes and it’s been passed down through our family for over 200 years! Perfect for breakfast or dessert, these rolls are the perfect treat for a cozy autumn day.
Grandma’s House
My Grandma was such a lovely, sweet, tender hearted woman and these apple rolls are her recipe from over 100 years ago at least (although I did modernize them with butter instead of lard). She pass just a few months ago now so this recipe has taken on a new level of tenderness and memory.
I loved going to Grandma’s house, sitting on her lap to read a bazillion stories and have her tickle my arms or back until both of us were out cold. She lived in the same, cute house in Jerome, Idaho until the end, and I don’t know that many people had a backyard quite like hers. We would have summer picnics where all the cousins would come over and we’d run around playing games while the adults prepared the food and Grandma made homemade ice cream.
The weather was always perfect, the grass green and the trees were strong and tall to climb in. You could always find my older sister up in an apple or apricot tree reading another book. We loved visiting the cows on the farm to give them bottles, collecting “cat tails”, playing in the ditch, and creating “circus acts” on the swing set during family picnics under the fruit trees. Grandma’s house was magical.
Heirloom Rolls
This apple roll recipe has sooo much sentimental value to me. This is a recipe that just keeps getting passed down through the generations, and I now I’ve taught my darling girls to make them for their future families. Grandma said that this recipe was passed down through the “Mamas” to their new families clear until it got to my mom, who hates cooked apples and dropped the ball. I’m lucky that Grandma taught me to make them so I can continue the tradition. I love how much she loved this recipe and her memories of her mother making them and the kids being so excited and mouths just watering while they waited to eat them.
Here’s what Grandma said about the rolls,
“We used to be so hungry for them, and mama would put them in a big square pan and that’s all we would eat for dinner. We would eat them with fresh cream and we just couldn’t wait to eat them up!”
Grandma was just darling. Seriously, just look at how cute she was! Mary Tyler Thueson was an incredible storyteller. In fact, she wrote a book and gave it to each of her kids and grandkids. So, I thought it would be fun to share her stories every now and again (scroll down past the recipe card to read one of Grandma’s stories). Plus, I love that these old recipes use ingredients that are simple and have been around forever.
Ingredients for Heirloom Apple Rolls
It may come as a surprise but there is no yeast in these sweet rolls. There are just a few ingredients needed to make this treasured recipe. Here is what you’ll need:
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