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    Home » Recipes » Healthy Kitchen

    Vegan Jewish New Year Recipes

    Published: Aug 17, 2011 · Updated: Aug 18, 2021 · This post may contain affiliate links.

    For Jews around the world, early fall is the beginning of a new year, marking Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year. Here are vegan Jewish new year recipes and menus for the vegan and vegetarian dinner table. Rosh Hashana is more than a New Year's celebration. The holiday's ancient roots are as a harvest festival, and enjoyment of the abundant produce of early autumn remains central to the celebration. The foods served emphasize this holiday's optimistic spirit. And so, naturally sweet foods are favored at the dinner table.

    Shown above, Moroccan-Flavored Tofu with Apricots, Almonds, and Olives; photo by Susan Voisin. Even more recipes for the Jewish New Year and other holidays around the year can be found in Vegan Holiday Kitchen, from which some of the recipes in this section are adapted.

    Egg-free vegan challah
    Egg-free Vegan Challah; Photo by Hannah Kaminsky

    It's hard to imagine a Rosh Hashana celebration without challah bread. For vegans, the challenge becomes making this moist bread without its characteristic ingredient—eggs. Egg-free vegan challah, shown above, is the result of much experimentation by Rachel Orenstein Packer, a guest contributor to VegKitchen. Then, there's the ritual of spreading chunks of this tender bread with honey, as well as dipping apple slices in honey, which, for the strictest of vegans can be simply replaced with agave nectar.

    The choice of produce used for a Jewish New Year meal will differ somewhat depending on whether the meal has an  Ashkenazi (Eastern European) or Sephardic (Mediterranean and Middle Eastern) theme. Ashkenazi dishes feature apples, sweet potatoes, beets and other foods native to Eastern Europe.

    Sephardic dishes feature such foods as apricots, dates, pumpkins. and turnips. Both traditions make liberal use of leeks, squash, carrots, and other produce that is plentiful in early fall; these vegetables symbolize abundance and prosperity. Choose from this mix-and-match menu to create an abundant, festive meal for your family and friends.

    Soups
    Note that since this holiday usually falls anywhere from mid- to late-September, the weather can be either still warm or getting nippy depending on where you live. A soup course is optional, but if you'd like to serve it, go for the cold soup if you're in a warm zone, or either of the two hot soups if the weather has turned cooler.

    • Raw or Nearly-Raw Cold Beet Borscht
    • Classic Mushroom-Barley Soup
    • Butternut Squash and Apple Soup
    • Creamy Zucchini Soup
    Nearly raw beet borscht
    Raw or nearly raw beet borscht; photo by Hannah Kaminsky

    Traditional Jewish New Year Recipes and Main Dishes

    • Egg-Free (Vegan) Challah
    • Sweet Potato Tzimmes
    • Vegan Noodle Kugel
    • Seven-Vegetable Couscous
    • Moroccan-Style Vegetable Stew
    • Buckwheat Groats (Kasha) with Vermicelli and Fall Vegetables
    • Sephardic Stewed White Beans
    • Moroccan-Flavored Tofu with Apricots, Almonds, and Olives
    • Two Potato Kugel
    vegan noodle kugel recipe
    Vegan Noodle Kugel; photo by Hannah Kaminsky

    Salads

    • Beet, Cucumber, and Orange Salad
    • Zucchini with Mint 
    • Refreshingly Fruited Red Cabbage Salad
    • Sweet and White Potato Salad with Mixed Greens
    White and sweet potato salad1
    Sweet and White Potato Salad with Mixed Greens

    Vegetable Side Dishes

    • Wine-Braised Leeks with Red Peppers and Shiitakes
    • Sautéed Carrots with Dried Fruits
    • Sautéed Carrots with Almonds
    • Garlic-Roasted Carrots
    • Summer Squash Sauté
    Sautéed Carrots with Almonds
    Sautéed Carrots with Almonds; photo by Evan Atlas

    Desserts and sweets

    • Just-as-Sweet-as-Honey Cake
    • Rosh Hashanah Apple Ruglach
    • Nutty Cashew Dates
    • Vegan Apple Strudel
    • Maple Baked Pears
    vegan honey cake
    Just-as-Sweet-as-Honey Cake; Photo by Susan Voisin
    • Here are more tips for keeping Holidays and Special Occasions healthy!
    • For lots more features on healthy lifestyle, explore VegKitchen’s Healthy Vegan Kitchen page.
    « Arugula Pasta with Salsa Cruda
    Turning Leftovers into Tasty Lunches for School or Work »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Johanna says

      September 27, 2011 at 3:18 am

      Great collection! Can't wait to prepare some of these!!!

    2. Marcia says

      September 19, 2014 at 1:35 pm

      ThankYou!!!

    3. Marcia says

      September 19, 2014 at 1:36 pm

      Thank you!! Fantastic ideas. The eggless challah, amazing!!

    4. Mordechai says

      September 20, 2014 at 1:55 pm

      Thanks for posting. Shana tova!

    5. Nava says

      September 20, 2014 at 2:02 pm

      Thank you; same to you, Mordechai!

    6. Talia says

      September 22, 2014 at 11:46 pm

      Delicious choices! Thanks, and have a wonderful new year. 🙂

    7. Nava says

      September 23, 2014 at 9:13 am

      Thank you, Talia — same to you!

    8. LL says

      July 07, 2015 at 5:26 am

      Sweet potatoes are not native to eastern europe. That should be clarified so as to not spread misinformation and take credit from the Indigenous peoples of the americas who were the first to use sweet potatoes as their traditional food. So much has been taken from Indigenous americans. It isn't asking much to expect people to properly credit what region their "traditional" food originated in.

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