Every special occasion requires a toast with a cocktail, even Hanukkah. Something that brings a bit of light and life to an already lively affair. Something surprising to get tongues wagging and laughter ringing. TABLE Magazine Publisher Justin Matase concocted a very special drink for our Hanukkah celebration, and you will want to try it at home for any number of holidays and special occasions!
Sip this Hanukkah Cocktail Just Before a Feast with Hélène Jawhara Piñer’s Sephardic Recipes
Sweet Fried Eggplant
Eggplants and Sephardim have become a true culinary love story. There are so many eggplant dishes from Sephardic Jews in Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Morocco, and more. Nowadays, eggplant dishes are traditionally prepared to break the fast in Jewish communities.
Ifseng
Also called sfenğ, this fried pastry is common among Jews and Muslims especially in Morocco and Israel. It is also calledesponja (“sponge”) in Spanish, a word derived from the Arabic term sjenğ of the same meaning. The recipe dates back to the thirteenth century, when this and similar dishes were popular in al-Andalus.
Tortitas de Acelga
Piñer’s Tortitas de Acelga recipe combines some of the main ingredients of Sephardic cuisine from Spain: Swiss chard, eggs, garlic, and olive oil. This perfect Passover dish uses chickpea flour.
Makrūt and Neulas Encanonadas
Maqrūt is another type of fried honey pastry typical to Jews and Muslims from Morocco, and this recipe dates back to thirteenth-century al-Andalus. These tasty pastries with honey and dates are now associated with the holidays: Muslims eat maqrūṭ when breaking the fast of Ramadan, and Sephardim of Morocco and France eat them for Rosh Hashana.
Her book, Sephardi: Cooking the History, can be purchased through your favorite bookstore or online. For our article on Hanukkah and Sephardi, click here.
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Hanukkah 75 Cocktail
Description
A cocktail to light up eight nights.
Ingredients
For the cocktail:
- 1 oz of gin
- 1/2 oz lemon juice
- 1/2 oz of Butterfly pea simple syrup (recipe below)
- 4 oz of champagne or dry sparkling wine
For the simple syrup:
- 1 cup of water
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1/2 cup of butterfly pea leaves
Instructions
For the cocktail:
- Add gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup to flute and top with champagne.
- Garnish with a lemon twist.
For the simple syrup:
- Bring to a boil and let cool.
- Strain tea leaves. It can be made ahead and kept in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Story by Maggie Weaver
Photography by Scott Goldsmith
Styling by Keith Recker
Cocktail by Justin Matase
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