This is the year in Jewish holidays for anyone who gives gifts: what each occasion is, whether a food gift fits, and where to learn the etiquette. Dates shift each year because the Jewish calendar is lunar, so we give seasons rather than dates. Bookmark this page; it links to every guide we have written, and new guides land here as they publish.
Rosh Hashanah (September-ish)
The Jewish new year, celebrated with festive meals and sweet foods for a sweet year ahead. Excellent food-gift holiday, arguably the best of the fall. Honey, apples, and sweet baked goods all carry the theme. Full etiquette: what to bring to Rosh Hashanah dinner.
Yom Kippur (ten days later)
The day of atonement, spent fasting. You do not gift for the day itself; you gift for the break-fast meal that ends it, where gentle, ready-to-serve food is gold. Guide: what to bring to a break-fast.
Sukkot (five days after that)
A week of meals outdoors in the sukkah. Gifts should handle outdoor tables and follow meat meals, which favors non-dairy desserts. Guide: what to bring to a Sukkot meal.
Hanukkah (December-ish)
Eight nights of light, latkes, and yes, gifts, though gifting is a modern American addition. The season's biggest gifting window by volume. Our full Hanukkah gift guide lands here soon.
Tu BiShvat (late January or February)
The new year for trees, celebrated with fruits and nuts. Small holiday, lovely gesture window: anything almond is on theme.
Purim (a month later)
The costume-and-carnival holiday with a built-in food gift tradition: mishloach manot, baskets of ready-to-eat food sent to friends. The one holiday where food gifting is literally a commandment. Our practical guide to Purim baskets is on the way.
Passover (spring)
The seder holiday, and the year's biggest dietary minefield for gift-givers: leavened grain products are off the table for the week, which includes most baked goods, ours included. Our honest take on mandel bread and Passover publishes well before the season.
Shavuot (early summer)
The Torah-receiving holiday, celebrated with dairy foods: cheesecake and blintzes rule this table, and we will be honest, as always: they have earned it. But if you want a cookie in the mix, our Chocolate-Chip and Gluten-Free Chocolate-Chip MandelBites are the two flavors with real dairy in the chips, so they fit the theme and dunk beautifully in the after-dinner coffee. Otherwise, bring dairy, bring flowers, and we will see you at Rosh Hashanah.
Shabbat (every single week)
Not a holiday, a rhythm: Friday night dinner, fifty-two times a year. The most common occasion you will ever be invited to. Our full Shabbat dinner guide lands here soon.
Life events, year-round
Between holidays, life happens: brises and baby namings, bar and bat mitzvahs, weddings, and shivas. We are writing a guide to each, and they will link from this page as they publish, starting with shiva etiquette this month.
Frequently asked questions
Which Jewish holidays involve gift-giving?
Hanukkah and Purim have real gift traditions. For the rest, hostess gifts at holiday meals are the norm: something sweet, kosher-aware, and ready to serve.
What food gift works for the most Jewish holidays?
A non-dairy, shelf-stable sweet covers nearly every table except Passover. That describes mandel bread almost suspiciously well, which is not a coincidence: the cookie evolved for these exact tables.
Why do Jewish holiday dates change every year?
The Jewish calendar is lunar, so holidays drift within a window on the secular calendar. Check the current year before you ship anything.
One cookie, most tables
Grandma Jeanne's mandel bread has been showing up at these tables for four generations, with a delicate crunch on the outside, softer on the inside. Denver locals can order gift boxes right on our site, and we ship locally. Everywhere else in the U.S., we ship through Goldbelly, whatever the season.