Those of us who are about to ring in the Jewish new year, Rosh Hashanah, are all aware of the tradition of dipping apples into honey as a symbol of all the sweet things that we hope the new year will bring for us. My family is no exception and, this week, as we gather to celebrate, there will definitely be apples and honey on our table.

But here’s the thing, sometimes the new year brings with it an abundance of honey coated events while other years are seriously lacking in sweetness. In my experience, however, it’s the combination of the two that helps us achieve a balance in life. After all, how would we know to appreciate happiness if we’ve never been sad. How would we know how good it feels to win if we’ve never lost. How would we know to appreciate out best friend if we’ve never had to live without them? I could go on and on but I’m sure that you’re getting tired of my sappy rambling.

I guess the point that I’m trying to make is that life is all about balance. Good things happen but so do bad things and what do you do when life gives you lemons (this is a food blog after all)? Well, some people might make the proverbial lemonade. I however, chose to make challah. Lemon-blueberry challah to be exact.

As soon as I saw this recipe from Mandy Silverman I had to try it. Bright, cheerful, and so amazingly delicious, this is a twist on the traditional challah that will be served throughout the world during the upcoming Jewish holiday season. Sweet blueberry filling to celebrate all the happy things that the new year will bring, slightly tangy from a bit of lemon zest to remind us to appreciate all the good things in our lives, even in difficult times, and a decadent, sugary glaze to hopefully tip the scale towards a sweet year ahead. To me, this challah symbolizes the balance of life and all that it may bring in the coming year.

I hope that you’ll give this Lemon-Blueberry Challah recipe a whirl. If you do, please let me know what you think or tag me on Instagram. I always love hearing from everyone and seeing pictures of anything that you make. And above all, thank you so much for stopping by.