If the matzo ball is the common man of Jewish soup dumplings—doughy, resolute, and ready to serve—the kreplach is its aristocrat: shapely, well-tailored, and with untold riches squirreled away in hidden pockets. Traditionally eaten around the High Holidays, kreplach—along with other stuffed foods—assume a special significance during Sukkot and its later days, when it is believed that the divine decree inscribed on Rosh Hashanah and sealed on Yom Kippur is delivered up to heaven. Kreplach here becomes more than just a food. It is a kind of prayer.

Gabriel Sanders is Tablet’s director of business development.