Do you know what's in a Rosh Hashanah seder?

On Rosh Hashanah, some Jews, particularly in Sephardic and Mizrahi communities, assemble a seder plate full of symbolic foods. Each one represents a hope for the new year.

Sometimes, the symbolism is based on the food's form or taste. Others, the meaning comes from a pun or other play on words, in which the food's Hebrew or Aramaic name sounds like another word, story or value.

Which foods are traditionally part of the seder plate?

Sorry, that was a lot of clicking. So, let's start with an easy one: What do apples and honey symbolize?

A fertile new year

A new year of productivity

A year of studiousness

Sweetness in the new year

Many people include a date (tamar). What does it represent?

An end to those who wish us ill

The end of the previous year

The 40 years Moses spent in the desert

The seeds of new growth

If you include a beet (selek), it might stand for:

The retreat or removal of our enemies

Children playing catch

A strong heart

The blood of generations

Now, onto leeks or scallions (karti). Some Sephardic or Mizrahi Passover Seders use leeks as whips to represent slavery in Egypt. What do you think they mean here?

Envy

Cutting off or destroying enemies

Bad breath

Health in the new year

And the pomegranate (rimon)?

Teeth so straight no seeds can get stuck in them

Wealth and financial success

A year full of as many mizvot as the pomegranate has seeds

Something weird and kabbalistic, no one knows

The pumpkin (kr'a) symbolizes:

Spooky season

That God will dismiss our faults and count our merits

Protection against ghosts

A fat belly all winter long

Why do we eat green beans at the Rosh Hashanah seder?

In hope of prosperity and blessings

To encourage our children to grow tall like a bean

To make the garden green all winter

It's an attempt to ward off envy

The head (rosh) of a lamb represents (check all that apply):

The story of the Akedah, or binding of Isaac

Guillotines to behead the wealthy

The start, or head, of the year

A desire to be leaders instead of followers

Do you know what's in a Rosh Hashanah seder?

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