Feast of Trumpets Smoothie Bowls: Fun and Delicious Way to Celebrate Yom Teruah

Looking for a fun and festive way to celebrate the Feast of Trumpets? This recipe is such a fun DIY project to make for Yom Teruah or to teach kids about this special Biblical holiday in a way that's really engaging! Smoothie bowls are healthy and easy to make, and you can of course customize it to suit your preferences and the ingredients you have on hand. It can easily be made gluten free, vegan, or whatever else you may need. I used an ice cream cone as a shofar which makes it perfect for the Feast of Trumpets. The blue backdrop and lots of white and yellow toppings symbolize the search for the new moon, which marked the holiday in the Bible. Celebrate Trumpets in a fun way this year!

You can use any smoothie or smoothie bowl recipe. I wanted mine to look blue since there is such an emphasis on looking for the new moon in the night sky for the Feast of Trumpets. I used blueberries and yogurt, but blackberries or elderberries or acai or blue majik spirulina could also make a blue smoothie. You can easily use whatever you like or have handy, and it's simple to adjust these for any dietary preferences or allergies. 



Night Sky Smoothie:
1 cup frozen blueberries
2 cups yogurt
1 tablespoon spirulina powder
1 tablespoon honey (or to taste for sweetness)

Put your blueberries in the blender and run the ice crushing setting for 30 seconds or so to break up the berries. This makes it easier to smoothly blend everything. (If you don't have this setting on your blender let them thaw for a few minutes before blending everything together.) Once your berries are mostly in small pieces, add the yogurt, spirulina powder, and honey and blend until smooth.

The spirulina is optional but it gives you a nutritional boost and also is responsible for the dark shade of blue. Without it the combination was more of a light purple. 

Once your smoothie is blended, pour it into bowls and decorate.

To decorate I used:

Ice cream cones for shofars (use gluten free if necessary)
Blueberries
Calendula flowers
Peaches
Sliced apples
Melon
Chia seeds
Sesame seeds
Coconut flakes
Menorah cupcake toppers (from here)

You could use any fruit or berry, seeds, nuts, or edible flower. Granola or cereal works here, and so do sprinkles or chocolate. You can use cookie cutters to make fun shapes out of apple slices. A ten commandment gummie would be a great touch too. It's easy to make these exactly to your liking and everyone can decorate their own bowl. If you don't mind a thinner smoothie base, you can even make the smoothie the day before and keep it in the fridge, along with sliced fruit for topping.

I hope you have fun making these smoothie bowls!

More posts on the Feast of Trumpets:

The Beginner's Guide to the Feast of Trumpets
Music and Moonlight Yom Teruah Celebration
DIY Noisemaker Craft for the Feast of Trumpets

Shavuot: First Fruits of Wheat

Shavuot--the final Springtime feast--the harvest holiday--the Feast of Weeks--is almost here. Have you been counting the omer? By my count we are on the 44th day of the omer, and Shavuot will arrive on day fifty, this Sunday evening. This feast is also known in Greek as Pentecost, which means fiftieth.

What is Shavuot? Exodus 34:22 tells us,

And you shall observe Chag Shavuot, of the bikkurim of the wheat harvest.

While bikkurim is Hebrew for first fruits, this is a separate feast from the First Fruits during Matzah week, which concerns the barley harvest.

Shavuot is about wheat.

Scripture speaks highly of wheat. Our culture does not. Most of us hear "gluten free" and equate that with healthy. But the Bible says that wheat is good.

It is widely believed that the Torah was given on Shavuot, but did you know Scripture doesn't actually tell us that? Exodus 19:1 says that the Torah was given during the third month of the year, so it is likely that this idea is correct as Shavuot falls in the month of Sivan. However, I think we should be aware this isn't necessarily the case.

The most significant Shavuot in history happened ten days after Yahusha ascended into the shmayim.

Acts 2:1-4
And when the moed of Shavuot was fully counted by the omer, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from the shamayim as of a groaning Ruach, and it filled all the Bayit where they were sitting. And there appeared to them divided tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Ruach Hakodesh, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Ruach Hakodesh gave them utterance.

The Spirit of Set Apartness fell on the Temple. The Torah was written on the hearts of men.

On Shavuot, we are to give thanks for the first wheat harvest. The spring harvest is undeniably important but the biggest harvest happens in the fall. On Shavuot, we thank YHWH for providing for us for this time, and we remind ourselves that he will provide again.

On Shavuot we give thanks for the word of YHWH and his Holy Spirit in our lives, we expect an outpouring of understanding that day, and we look forward to what he will provide. Is it hypocritical to show thankfulness for what we've been given while asking for more? Absolutely not. As with the wheat offering, we give thanks for each loaf of bread but we recognize that one meal won't sustain us forever. Shavuot is about remembering that YHWH has sustained us until now and he will keep sustaining us. As with the wheat offering it is a time to place our well-being in his hands.

Celebrate: Yom Teruah

Are you new to celebrating the Biblical holidays? You came to the right place! Today I want to discuss Yom Teruah in more detail and talk about ways to celebrate!

Yahusha had a cousin who was a prophet. His message was simple, “Turn from your sins to YHWH, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near!” (Mattiyahu 3:2)

Like Yochanan the Immerser, Yom Teruah also carries with it a message of repentance. The start of the spiritual new year calls us to examine ourselves and our actions of the past months and turn back to YHWH.

Repentance (teshuvah in Hebrew) bears so much significance in Scripture that rabbis have declared the entire month of Elul and the first ten days of Tishrei to be a special time of reflection and repentance to prepare for Yom Kippur. This is a total of 40 days of spiritual preparation.

It is possible that these 40 days—where Yom Teruah is day 31—correlate to Yahusha’s 40 days of fasting in the wilderness in Mattiyahu 4, where he headed following his immersion by his cousin. Luke 3:23 supports this hypothesis by mentioning that Yahusha was “about 30 years old” when he began his ministry. Since we know Yahusha was born in the fall wouldn’t it make sense that it was at the spiritual start of the year when he began teaching and doing miracles?

Whether or not that idea is correct we should take this opportunity to celebrate the beginning of a new year. We are instructed to do so in Vayikra 23, and like all the festivals of YHWH it bears much significance. 

How do we celebrate?

1.   Rest. This is the first direction for Yom Teruah given in Vayikra 23:23. Take the day off from work and take it easy!

2.   Regather. Scripture calls for a holy convocation. Attend a congregation for worship if possible or take this opportunity to gather family and like minded believers together.

3.   Remember.  Hopefully you have the opportunity to recollect with your family or congregation, but if not at least make it a point to reflect by yourself. You can journal or discuss these questions: What did this past year consist of? What significant events happened and how did you see YHWH’s hand in them? What were your favorite parts of the year? Is there something you would like to do-over? How have you grown spiritually?

4.   Sound the shofar. If you don’t have a spiritually like-minded group to meet with, you may want to consider purchasing a shofar. Yom Teruah is after all the Day of the Sounding, and shofars are also blown on Rosh Chodesh.

5.   Bring an offering. Vayikra 23:25 specifies an offering made by fire, as in an animal sacrifice. In lieu of that consider a financial offering and ask YHWH what he would have you do. Making time for studying the Word, a volunteer commitment, and offering hospitality to others are a few ideas.

Those are the Scripturally mandated ways to celebrate Yom Teruah. Other traditions include having or attending a festive meal. Apples dipped in honey are often eaten in hopes of a sweet year. The traditional greeting for Yom Teruah is, “L’shana tova,” which approximates to, “Have a great year!”

Do you have a favorite Yom Teruah tradition? I would love to hear about it! Need more inspiration? Visit my Yom Teruah board on Pinterest for decoration ideas, traditional recipes, and fun crafts!

Free Milk & Honey Printable

I hope everyone has been enjoying lovely spring weather as we countdown the final days of the Omer. Seeing lovely chalk art on various blogs and coffee shops and cafes inspired me to create this printable for Shavuot.

Styled simply with a fresh tulip in an antique milk jar and honey.

 Exodus 3:8 describes Israel as a land "flowing with milk and honey." With the centrality that dairy--ice cream, cheesecake, blintzes, and more--plays in the Shavuot celebrations I thought it would be fitting. It is an excellent reminder of the beauty of the land of Israel and also the abundant blessings YHVH provides each of us.

So thankful for the many fresh blooms in my yard!

This printable is free for your personal use. I hope you will use it to decorate your home for Shavuot.

Milk and Honey printable by Land of Honey.

Download this printable for Shavuot here.