What is in season in Tel Aviv. and what to order when the market changes.

Spring

  • Oznei Haman (Purim pastries): In the weeks before Purim in February or March, Tel Aviv bakeries stack oznei Haman, the three-cornered cookies filled with poppy seed, date or halva.
  • Mofletta (Mimouna): The night Passover ends, Maghrebi families lay out Mimouna tables of sweets and mofletta, a thin crepe eaten with honey or jam as the first leavened food of spring.
  • Artichokes and asparagus: Spring artichokes and asparagus arrive around Passover, when they sit beside chicken soup with matzah dumplings on Seder tables across the city.

Summer

  • Shavuot dairy: Shavuot in early summer is the dairy holiday: bakeries and cafes turn out cheesecake made with gvina levana, cheese bourekas and cheese-based pashtidot pies.
  • Maya mango: The Israeli mango season runs from May towards October, and the fragrant, fibreless Maya variety is in the markets from July to September, often turned into sorbet.
  • Limonana: Limonana, frozen lemonade blended with fresh mint and invented in Israel in the early 1990s, is the drink of beach kiosks and cafes through the hot months.

Autumn

  • Pomegranates and honey (Rosh Hashanah): Rosh Hashanah in September brings apples dipped in honey, round challah and honey cake, and dishes cooked with pomegranate juice appear on holiday tables.
  • Sabra (prickly pear): Prickly pear ripens from August through October; the spiny fruit, tzabar in Hebrew, gave Israeli-born Jews their nickname, sabra.
  • Chraime for the holidays: Moroccan Jewish families serve chraime, fish in a spicy tomato sauce, at the Rosh Hashanah meal, where fish stands for abundance.

Winter

  • Sufganiyot (Hanukkah doughnuts): Around Hanukkah in December, Tel Aviv bakeries sell sufganiyot, jam doughnuts dusted with sugar, now also filled with chocolate, vanilla or cappuccino cream.
  • Levivot (latkes): Hanukkah's other fried food is levivot, potato pancakes, served at home and in cafes alongside newer versions made with sweet potato, courgette or cheese.
  • Citrus season: Winter is citrus season: Jaffa oranges, tangerines and the pomelit, the grapefruit and pomelo hybrid Israeli growers export as Sweeties, go into fresh juice pressed at street kiosks.
  • Tu BiShvat dried fruit: Tu BiShvat in late January or early February calls for dried figs, dates, raisins, carob and almonds, sold loose from the sacks at Levinsky Market spice shops.

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