Posts tagged 'food gift' | Kosher Gift Giving

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Jewish Holiday Traditions

Jewish holiday traditions in regards to gift giving are different from those associated with Christian holidays. For example, while Christians like to give gifts to all the important people in their lives during the Christmas holiday, Jews generally only give Hanukah gifts to their own children. This is not to say that people of the Jewish faith don't enjoy gift giving. In fact, they excel in the spirit of generosity. However, they focus their gift giving efforts on a spring holiday known as Purim, as opposed to their winter holiday of Hanukah.

Contemporary Jewish Holiday Gift Giving

In the United States the melting pot effect has evolved the way that many American Jews celebrate their holidays, especially in regards to gift giving. For example, many Jewish families who are headed by a couple of mixed faiths or have friends who are Christian exchange Christmas gifts. Business owners who are Jewish have also started to give their customers and employees, who many be Jewish, Christian or another religion, holiday gifts as a way to say thank you for their business or service.

Kosher Giving During the Holidays

Kosher gifts are attractive to both people of the Jewish faith as well as to people of other faiths. Kosher is a Jewish term that refers to religious laws for food items. The basic rules of being kosher require that meat come from specific "clean" sources, that it is slaughtered properly and that it is not manufactured, processed or served with dairy products. When you are selecting a kosher gift to give to someone this year or next, make sure you keep the rules for being kosher in mind. However, if you are unsure what items are kosher and what items are not, just look for an "OU" symbol on the label of the item you are buying; this means that it has been certified as kosher.

Kosher Ideas for Holiday Gifts

Nearly everyone enjoys a food gift, and because of this many businesses and people decide to give food gift baskets. If you are interested in kosher giving you will need to pay attention to what items are included in your baskets. First of all make sure dairy and meat items are not mixed in a single basket. For example, you can put together a kosher dairy gift basket with items like kosher cheese spreads, kosher certified dairy candies (like the ones produced by Enstrom's) and kosher dairy beverage mixes.

If you want a hardier gift basket, then put together meat baskets or soup baskets. For example, a kosher chili-making gift basket makes a great gift. These baskets tend to include a pot for making chili, a seasoning mix, beans and serving bowls. To ensure this gift basket is appropriate for a kosher gift you need to make sure that the meat that is included is kosher, or simply remove the non-kosher meat from the basket and replace it with a can of certified kosher chili meat.

While kosher holiday gifts of any type will be appreciated, the top kosher gifts will come from the heart and be backed up by your sincere appreciation or love.

References

http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/entry/kosher

http://www.jewfaq.org/kashrut.htm

Stritof, Sheri and Stritof Bob. (2008). "Observing the winter holidays as a Jewish-Christian interfaith couple."

Written by JB Robbins

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• Filed under: Jewish Holiday Traditions
• Tags: jewish holiday, jewish traditions, hanukah, hanukah gifts. gift giving, kosher, kosher gifts, food gift, gift basket.