One of my favorite memories growing up had to do with the family dinners that we had at my grandmother’s house. She always cooked for Thanksgiving and Christmas and often for other holidays like Easter as well. Everyone loved my grandmother’s cooking. She made everything from scratch, the way she was taught.
Whenever grandmother had a family dinner, one thing that we could count on was her homemade dinner and cinnamon rolls. They literally melted in your mouth and were always fluffy and absolutely perfect.
Grandmother never shared the secret of her cinnamon rolls with anyone. In fact, no one was allowed in the kitchen while she was making them. Like my great grandmother’s fudge, grandmother’s cinnamon rolls were highly prized because you could only have them a few times a year.
When I turned 16, grandmother invited me into the kitchen to learn how to make her rolls. I couldn’t believe it at the time. Both my mother and my aunt had been begging her for years to share her secret recipe; all to no avail. Yet she was willing to teach me the secret. I felt truly honored.
As grandmother got older and could no longer handle the big family dinners on her own I, of course, took over. I loved to cook so it was a special treat for me.
I remember the first year I made the cinnamon rolls by myself. Grandmother insisted that I tell no one that she hadn’t made them. I agreed, wanting to give her as many years of appreciation for her efforts as possible. But that isn’t what she had in mind at all.
As the family dug into the fluffy treats, you could hear the “hmmms” and “ahhhs” coming fast and furious. Person after person told grandmother that they were the best rolls yet. She smiled, turned to me and simply said “I know you could do it!” It took the family a few minutes to catch on, but once they did they were lavish with their praise.
It was both a happy and sad day for me. It was happy because I knew I was carrying on an important tradition; one that my beloved grandmother entrusted just to me. It was sad, however, because it was the last time I ever had a cinnamon roll made by my grandmother.
I still make those rolls for my family and each time that I do, when my son-in-law – – who isn’t normally a participant in sweets – – flashes a big smile, I think of my grandmother and I feel her love envelope me.
Obviously, I’m particular about my cinnamon rolls. I usually don’t like the store bought versions or the ones that come rolled in a can. However, recently I discovered Pillsbury’s Sugar Free Cinnamon Rolls and decided to give them a try. I’m glad that I did.
I’m always coming up with new sugar free recipes of my own and searching for sugar free foods. I’ll be honest and say that most of them are horrible. However, once in a while I run across something that really works. Pillsbury’s Sugar Free Cinnamon Rolls do just that.
Oftentimes when you use a substitute sugar product in baked goods it skews the taste too far one way or the other. Some items come out too sweet while others come out bland. Additionally, some sugar replacements interact with other ingredients to change the consistency of the batter or dough.
Neither of those things happened with Pillsbury’s Sugar Free Cinnamon Rolls. They remain light, fluffy, and airy with the perfect hint of pretend sugary sweetness.
The rolls also come with a tin of sugar free icing for those who like that type of topping. Even it tastes exactly like the real thing.
Each roll, which is sizable, weighs in at 110 calories each, or two points for those who count points instead of calories. The recommended serving size is a single roll. Each has 3.5 fat grams, 23 grams of carbs, 3 grams of fiber, and 2 grams of protein. The bad news, however, is that each roll does contain 360 milligrams of sodium, which may be too much for those trying to stay away from salt.
The rolls come in eight to a package with each package costing approximately $2.99; although the cost will vary from grocer to grocer. They are available at most grocery stores and some discount department stores that carry food products.
This roll gets four and half stars out of five. It will definitely solve my craving for grandmother’s rolls; at least until I reach my goal weight.
