38 Recipes Perfect for Your Rosh Hashanah Celebration

Rosh Hashanah (or the Jewish New Year) is celebrated over the course of two days, the first and second days of the month of Tishrei on the Jewish calendar, which usually lands in the early fall. Rosh Hashanah is one of the holiest holidays of the year. It is celebrated by blowing the shofar (ram’s horn trumpet) and gathering for meals that symbolize the wish for a sweet and prosperous new year. Traditional feasts include foods like apples dipped in honey and round challah bread along with other classic holiday staples, like braised brisket. This version is juicy, tangy and slightly sweet. It's perfect for special occasions and holidays. Our low-and-slow cooking method and flavorful braising liquid make this tough cut incredibly tender. Just be sure to ask your butcher for a first-cut brisket, which is meatier than the fatty second cut.

An essential part of any Rosh Hashanah tradition is a challah loaf that’s round instead of long. The round shape represents the circular nature of the repeating seasons and hope for goodness all year with no end. Raisins, like apples and honey, are there to sweeten the New Year.

No Rosh Hashanah celebration is complete without a serving of tzimmes, a dish of root vegetables and dried fruits. The fruit and honey in the mix symbolize the sweetness of the New Year. The carrots and sweet potatoes are cut into rounds to honor the tradition of hope for goodness and sweetness without end. This version of the classic dish gets a savory undertone from a full cup of vegetable broth, making it all the better to pair with a slice of brisket or roast chicken.

Honey is the star of this delicious cake that’s perfect for a dairy-based Rosh Hashanah meal, or just for celebrating apple season. The combination of apples and honey signifies the hope for sweetness in the Jewish New Year. Honey is laced through every component of the dessert from the caramelized apples and moist yellow cake to the easy finishing glaze. The apple slices create a beautiful topping for this upside-down cake, which is reminiscent of a tarte tatin. We suggest using a firm apple, such as Golden Delicious, Gala or Pink Lady, so your slices hold their shape well during baking. Enjoy it warm or at room temperature. Bonus: The longer it sits, the moister it will get.

This baklava was created to honor the delicious combination of apples and honey. The syrup is honey-forward and the filling has less nuts than a classic baklava so the apples can really shine. Breadcrumbs between the bottom layers of phyllo help absorb any excess moisture from the apples and keep the phyllo crisp, even after being soaked in syrup.

Recipe developer Michelle Warner says, “Try this rich pomegranate-braised brisket for Rosh Hashanah to honor a sweet and prosperous New Year. Pomegranate is a prevalent ingredient in Israel, where my family is from, and here the juice and seeds bring flavor and color to this version of the holiday classic. I’ve also added fresh apples and dried cherries to bring more sweetness to the autumn celebration. It's topped with a drizzle of zhug, a spicy Yemenite condiment made from chiles and herbs that here gets a sweet hit of pomegranate syrup.”

This honey and olive oil cake is a perfect dessert for Rosh Hashanah since it’s both dairy-free and nut-free. Honey gives the cake a lovely floral flavor while the olive oil adds richness and keeps the cake moist and tender, even after several days. Using the right honey and olive oil makes all the difference in this recipe. We like orange blossom or wildflower honey because it gives the cake the sweetest flavor and complements the orange in the cake and glaze. Instead of a grassy, peppery olive oil, go for a mild, buttery one to blend beautifully with the other flavors. The fluffy batter comes from whipping the eggs and sugar until they’ve doubled in volume, an important step that helps give the cake its tender, airy texture.

Thanks to its warm combination of nutmeg, cardamom, allspice and shredded apples, this cake tastes just like fall. Apples and honey, two main players on the Rosh Hashanah table, are the stars of this cake. The apples provide a nice tart sweetness while the honey adds a deep, rich flavor that pairs nicely with the spice blend in this cake.

Honey horseradish wings are a little sweet and a little spicy, and the perfect Rosh Hashanah appetizer when dipped in Dijon ranch. The wings are baked but very crispy, thanks to a baking powder dredge and a slow roast in the oven. Note: Make sure your baking powder is aluminum free for the best tasting wings. To keep things kosher, substitute the non-dairy items listed for the dairy, and make sure your cream-style horseradish sauce does not contain dairy.

Turn the classic flavors of apples dipped in honey into the perfect side dish to serve along with roasted or braised meat. Chef Michael Tusk says you can substitute the butter this recipe calls for with poultry fat like chicken or duck. We’ve never met a schmaltz we didn’t like.

Apples get the hasselback treatment in this gorgeous fall dessert, which is drenched with cinnamon and vanilla-infused honey.

If you’re trying to think outside the brisket, try Ellie Krieger’s healthy turkey roulade, stuffed with dried cranberries, whole wheat bread and pecans and served with a shortcut apple cider gravy. It’s a lighter, holiday-worthy option that does not skimp on the sweet flavors of Rosh Hashanah.

While a loaf of braided challah is traditionally enjoyed on the Jewish Sabbath (in fact, the Sabbath begins with a blessing over challah), at Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, this eggy bread is shaped into a round to symbolize the cyclical nature of the year.

Honey adds a delicious pop of sweetness to this decadent and moist olive oil cake. We’ve paired the cake with apples gently simmered in a honey syrup. Make it for the holidays or anytime you’re craving a fall dessert.

Molly Yeh’s Brunch Brisket takes on all of the flavors of breakfast sausage, packed into a slow-cooked brisket. After browning the meat in a cast iron pan, Molly adds onions, apples, hard cider and white wine for a little sweetness, then drops everything into the slow cooker for a hands-off holiday meal.

A Rosh Hashanah favorite, Lekach gets its sweetness from honey and sugar, warmth from ground cinnamon, allspice and clove and a hint of earthiness from coffee. Dust it with some extra confectioners' sugar before serving for a beautiful dessert to celebrate the Jewish New Year.

“This is an elegant way to make a whole lot of chicken that tastes really, really good. It's kind of sweet and sour; sweet from the apricot preserves and the plums and sour from the bit of vinegar that I add. But what makes this dish are the sage leaves. They give a distinctive taste to the dish and make it a beautiful, festive platter that you can really be proud of,” says Dave Lieberman.

At the Rosh Hashanah meal, apples and honey symbolize the hope for a sweet new year. While this next-level cake isn’t traditional, it’s a fun dessert you can serve for the holiday or really anytime you want to impress. Scented with warm spices like cinnamon, cardamom, allspice and nutmeg, it requires just two bowls and no special equipment to whip up. And that’s not even the best part: When you cut into the loaf, entire slices of tart apples are revealed. At the very end, everything is drizzled with a salted honey glaze.

This quick-cooking main is perfect for when you’re serving a crowd, but short on time. The walnut relish topping makes a side of salmon a showstopper, and can be made a day in advance, cutting down how much time you’re spending in the kitchen before company arrives.

Buckwheat honey has a robust color and flavor that is both deeply floral and richly caramelly – almost like molasses. It balances the tartness of the slowly simmered apples in the filling and adds a really unique flavor that will appeal to any honey lover.

After any big holiday meal, it’s great to flip the leftovers into a new dish. Here a sweet-and-smoky salsa transforms a Rosh Hashanah brisket into Southwestern-style breakfast tacos with ingredients that are likely already in your kitchen. The optional potato chips add a delightful crunch.

“I know they’re going to be a hit,” Molly Yeh says about these glistening apple butter rolls. Using almond milk to activate your yeast infuses your roll batter with a nuttiness that wonderfully complements the rolls’ apple butter and almond paste filling. The decadent honey marzipan frosting can be made a day in advance and stored in an airtight container until you’re ready to use.

Mike Solomonov’s take on his mom’s brisket, starts out with a dry brine of coffee and spices to ensure your final product is packed with flavor all the way through. Mike is all about layering the flavor of this dish starting with the dry brine, then getting good caramelization on the meat and vegetables, but our favorite surprise ingredient is dried apricots, which can be substituted with other dried fruit like cherries or raisins, and add a subtle sweetness to this classic dish.

"My Bourbon Honey Cake came from a strong taste memory: It’s inspired by a classic Jewish holiday dessert that my mother served,” says Ina Garten. “I started with the flavors of honey, orange and autumn spices, then I added hot coffee for depth and rich bourbon to give it a grown-up edge. And because texture is so important, I added crunchy sliced almonds to the top. When it all came together, it was even better than I remembered!"

Giada De Laurentiis' Honey Ricotta Cheesecake sits on top of a buttery crust made from an after-dinner dessert cookie: biscotti. As for the filling, tangy cream cheese and creamy ricotta are sweetened with orange blossom honey, plus a tablespoon of orange zest. Enjoy a sweet and citrusy slice that's as easy as pie — but so much better.

An overnight spice rub of cumin, coriander, cinnamon, fennel seed and paprika sets the stage for a flavorful Rosh Hashanah dinner. Pomegranate molasses and Dijon mustard combine to make a slightly sweet glaze that perfectly complements the rub, and don’t forget to save those pan juices for a flavorful gravy to serve alongside. A capon is a chicken that’s larger than an average roaster; great for a crowd. You can also use a small turkey for this recipe.

Set out a plate of these delicate yet crispy cookies after dinner with a platter of fruit for an easygoing holiday dessert. A flourless batter of honey, brown sugar, butter and sliced almonds gives these treats their distinctive thin, holey appearance.

If you've made brisket for Rosh Hashanah, this flannel hash is a great way to use up some leftovers. It gets its name from the way the red beets create a checkered look, like a cozy blanket, with apple and sweet potato upping the autumnal ante. Using schmaltz is optional but highly recommended for the ultimate in flavor and crispness. Enjoy this simple yet sublime meal for breakfast, lunch or dinner, rounded out with a little green salad.

Tabbouleh is a Middle Eastern parsley and bulgur salad, to which Alon Shaya adds mint for fresh, floral flavors, almonds for a nutty crunch and pomegranates for a burst of sweet-acidic flavor.

This stunning free-form apple-pear tart is glazed with honey and comes together in just 35 minutes thanks to frozen store-bought puff pastry.

Classic roast chicken gets a holiday-worthy upgrade thanks to a quick lemon-honey baste, using fresh thyme instead of a brush or baster, which imparts tons of flavor.

These Sephardic Jewish cookies are usually served at Shabbat (Sabbath) dinners and on holidays. We loved the savory sesame flavor so much that we added tahini to the dough to help showcase it. They store well, so they're excellent cookies to keep around in case of unexpected guests.

No Rosh Hashanah table is complete without a honeyed dessert. This melt-in-your-mouth cake is soaked with the flavors of wildflower honey, citrus and cardamom before getting a finishing touch of glossy honey glaze – and looks just like a real honeycomb!

An overnight marinade in a sweet, briney mixture makes for a super low effort holiday meal.

If you're spending Rosh Hashanah dinner at someone else's house this year, bake and take Ina Garten's Honey Vanilla Pound Cake. Lightly sweetened with honey and sugar, this simple loaf is a perfect addition to the dessert spread.

This sweet treat is the perfect way to end a holiday meal. Even bitter lemons get the sweet treatment – they’ll be completely edible (skin and all) after being blanched and steeped in a honey simple syrup.

We think this challah is perfectly balanced, with a soft and fluffy texture from the egg yolks, a subtle tang from the olive oil and a slight sweetness thanks to the addition of honey. As a bonus, you can knead it by hand in just about 10 minutes—no stand mixer necessary. This recipe makes two loaves. And since the dough is pareve, it can be enjoyed with milk or meat meals year-round. For extra crunch, top a loaf with poppy seeds just before baking.