Rosh Hashanah Gifts & High Holiday Entertaining Ideas

Every year I host Break the Fast, and apples and pomegranates always find their way onto my tables. I serve caramel apples, too — partly because everyone loves them and partly because they carry the sweetness of Rosh Hashanah right tEvery year I host Break the Fast, and apples and pomegranates always find their way onto my tables. I serve caramel apples, too — partly because everyone loves them and partly because they carry the sweetness of Rosh Hashanah right through the High Holiday season.

One of the things I love about entertaining at this time of year is how easily the same foods and colors carry from one gathering to the next. Apples, honey, pomegranates, a little gold, and simple yet beautiful food can take you from a Rosh Hashanah dinner to Yom Kippur Break the Fast with just a few changes.

Those same traditions also inspire some wonderful gifts. From special honey and pretty honey pots to apple gifts, traditional sweets, and festive tableware, here are a few of our favorite ideas for celebrating the Jewish New Year and gathering together during the High Holidays.hrough the High Holiday season.

Set a Beautiful Rosh Hashanah Table

Apples and honey are such an easy place to begin. Sophistiplate has some especially pretty Rosh Hashanah paper goods this year, with golden apples, honeybees, scalloped edges, and warm gold details. The tableware feels festive without looking like novelty holiday plates. And paper plates make a larger family dinner considerably easier to clean up.

Layer the plates over bamboo chargers and add coordinating napkins, then let the food do much of the decorating. Line real apples and pomegranates down the center of the table, alternating them as you go, and add candles, honey, round challahs, and a few very small vases filled with fresh flowers or simple greenery. A pretty honey pot can become part of the table, too. No elaborate centerpiece is needed — the fruit, food, and candlelight create plenty of color and interest on their own.

A few apple-themed details can pull the table together without making it feel overly decorated. Simple acrylic apple napkin rings are inexpensive, festive, and easy to use again for fall dinners, while an apple-and-honey serving board adds a more special touch and can double as both decor and a serving piece.

Because many Etsy pieces are handmade, order early — especially if you are planning to bring one as a host gift. Give yourself enough time for the gift to arrive and to wrap ahead of time, so you are not rushing between services and dinner.

Give the Gift of Honey

A beautiful jar of honey may be the simplest Rosh Hashanah gift of all, especially when the honey itself feels a little special. The Savannah Bee Company Lavender Honey Flute is pretty enough to give on its own, or pair it with a honey dipper or honey pot for a more substantial gift.

A honey pot is something your host can bring back to the table year after year. I especially like designs with bees or subtle beehive details because they have an obvious connection to the holiday without looking so seasonal that they can't be used the rest of the year.

The Salisbury honey pot is a lovely middle-of-the-road choice, while the William Yeoward crystal honey jar is definitely a splurge. Fill either one with good honey and the gift is finished — no elaborate gift basket necessary.

Send Apples for a Sweet New Year

For friends and family celebrating somewhere else, sending fresh apples makes perfect sense. The Fruit Company offers kosher fruit gifts along with several premium apple varieties, so you can keep the gift simple and traditional. It's an especially nice choice for someone who doesn't need more things — fresh fruit gets enjoyed rather than stored.

Harry & David also offers Rosh Hashanah gifts, including ready-to-send apples-and-honey combinations for anyone who would rather have the whole tradition packaged together.

And remember, a shipped gift does not have to go directly to the recipient. If you're bringing it to dinner, order early and have it delivered to your own home so you have time to check it and wrap it before the celebration.

Something Sweet for the New Year

Rosh Hashanah calls for something sweet, and the Daniel Boulud Honey Apple Cake is almost too perfect for the occasion. Apples and honey come together in one beautiful, very giftable dessert, making it just as appropriate to send to someone as it is to serve at your own celebration.

A few other sweets bring very different personalities to the High Holiday table. I serve caramel apples every year at our Break the Fast, arranging them on a few cake plates at different heights. Harry & David's Apple Pie Apples, with caramel, white confection, and cinnamon sugar, would be especially pretty displayed this way.

For something more traditional, Russ & Daughters offers wonderful Jewish bakery favorites and High Holiday treats, while the whimsical Marzipop Rosh Hashanah treats shaped like apples, honey pots, pomegranates, challah, and shofars are especially fun for families, gifts, or individual place settings.

Pomegranates for the High Holiday Table

Pomegranates are another traditional Rosh Hashanah food and one of my favorite ways to decorate throughout the High Holidays. I usually mix real pomegranates with apples down the table, but pomegranate-inspired gifts and serving pieces are a pretty way to carry the theme beyond the centerpiece.

For an inexpensive tabletop accent, the red ceramic pomegranate bowls with gold spoons are charming and useful. Jo Malone Pomegranate Noir Soap makes an easy host gift when you want something other than food, while a Michael Aram pomegranate serving piece or piece of Judaica is a beautiful splurge for someone who loves special tabletop pieces.

Of course, you don't need to buy anything special. A few real pomegranates mixed with apples can make a beautiful centerpiece all by themselves. Prefer to bring a bottle of wine? See our Best Kosher Wines for Rosh Hashanah & the High Holidays for an easy place to start.

Sending New Year greetings, too? See our Rosh Hashanah New Year Cards for personalized photo cards, handmade designs, boxed sets, and ideas for what to write.

However and wherever you celebrate the High Holidays, L'Shanah Tovah — wishing you and yours a sweet, happy New Year and an easy fast.

Party Hearty!