Creative Kiddush A Different Start to Shabbat Dinner Featuring the Whiskey Margarita

Ritual. No matter your faith background, it can be rote at best, awkward at worst, and often just feels like the words standing between you and dinner. But ritual, for our ancestors, was a technology. It accomplished something specific, something almost magical, with meaning and intention.

One of the challenges of hosting Shabbat dinner is the balance between tradition and innovation. Too much of one, and you can’t taste the other. Ritual, not just the words, but where they come from, why we say them, and what they mean, is a complex cocktail, a blend of past and present that empowers us to accomplish something every Friday night. The Shabbat dinner table is a weekly opportunity to own ritual in a way that reflects your own evolution, not only where you come from, but who you just might become with meaning and intention.

Learn to make a margarita and you will instantly know a whole family of drinks. The word itself means daisy in Spanish, and its Mexican-American origins are up for debate, much like the origins of ritual. What makes a margarita different from many cocktails is its freshness and the brightness of its ingredients, as well as its tie to fiestas. Originally, the margarita was made for more formal gatherings (which is where its unique glass with a champagne stem comes from) but has transitioned into a drink for the masses.

Traditionally, a margarita is made with tequila; traditionally kiddush, the blessing that sanctifies Shabbat at the beginning of a Friday night dinner, is made over wine. But as we will learn tonight, margaritas can be made with whiskey and kiddush can be made over margaritas. All you have to do is amend the blessing.

The Whiskey Margarita

1 1/2 ounces of your favorite whiskey or bourbon

1 ounce triple sec

1 ounce lime juice

1/4 ounce (i.e. a splash) simple syrup

lime wedge and/or salt, to garnish

Combine all ingredients in an ice-filled cocktail shaker and shake.

Strain into ice-filled highball or a margarita glass.

Garnish as you like with lime and/or salt.