Rosh Hashana Apple of the Orchard Martini

Wow!  I can't believe that a new Jewish Year of 5779 is about to begin!  It's also about to be the one year anniversary of reviving this blog and starting my new instagram account @areasontolchayim!  

This year presents a bit of a challenge for me with this blog and my instagram.  I already posted many drink ideas last year, so this year I'm going to face up to the challenge to add as many new drinks as I can to this blog.  

Speaking of new things, let's talk about the New Year!  I was thinking about the tradition of eating apples with honey on Rosh Hashana and the reasons behind the tradition.  Many of us are familiar with the reasons of it's sweet and we want to have a sweet year, and that the fruit is round, just like a year begins and ends like a never-ending circle.  I was interested in finding out which instances an apple is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible.

In Isaiah, apples are mentioned as part of an orchard which is withering:

"Be dismayed, O farmers, wail, O vinedressers, over the wheat and barley, because the harvest of the field has perished. 12The grapevine is dried up, and the fig tree is withered; the pomegranate, palm, and apple—all the trees of the orchard— are withered."
-Isaiah

In the book of D'varim (Deuteronomy) and in Psalms, the apple is referred to as a metaphor to the mitzvot (Jewish commandments):

Deuteronomy 32:10
He found him in a desolate land, in a barren, howling wilderness; He surrounded him, He instructed him, He guarded him as the apple of His eye.
Psalm 17:8
Keep me as the apple of Your eye; hide me in the shadow of Your wings  

I think the idea of an apple being something to protect and to have in your mind or your eye is a nice idea.  It's up to all of us to take care of the orchards of apples, perhaps by trying to take on new mitzvot or to continue protecting the ones we are already taking on.  This idea helped to guide me with the Rosh Hashana Apple of the Orchard Martini.  Hopefully, this cocktail will not only go with the sweet theme of the holiday, but also help to inspire us all to improve in taking care of the orchard of mitzvot and each other in this new year of 5779.

Shana Tova U'Metukah!  

Recipe for Rosh Hashana Apple of the Orchard Martini:

The day or two (or even week before):  take 2-3 tea bags of apple tea (I like the Wizzotsky brand called Apple Delight), add them to a large plastic or glass bottle and fill with cold water.  Place in the fridge and let it sit for a day.

In a martini shaker add the following:
-2 shots of either vodka or rum
-(optional) 1 shot of sour apple liquor
-2 shots of lemonade
-3 shots of the apple iced tea
-ice cubes

Shake, pour, and serve!  You can also add a slice of apple to the glass as a festive garnish.

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Pesach Standing Drink

Pesach/Passover Standing Drink

Wishing you and your families and friends a wonderful Pesach holiday!  Here are my thoughts on my drink which I created for the seder this year:

Vehi she'amdah

The promise to our ancestors and to us STANDS.

I've been thinking about this phrase a lot recently with the standing and marching that I've been a part of (along with other cousins and friends).  I decided to look up other times when someone says "amad" in the tanakh/Bible:  

1)  when Yosef stood before his brothers in Egypt, about to reveal his true identity

2)  another time when  "amdah" is mentioned:

​ [פרק ל' פסוק ט']
וַתֵּרֶא לֵאָה כִּי עָמְדָה מִלֶּדֶת וַתִּקַּח אֶת-זִלְפָּה שִׁפְחָתָהּ וַתִּתֵּן אֹתָהּ לְיַעֲקֹב לְאִשָּׁה
when Leah took her "handmaid" Zilpah and gave her to Ya'akov as another wife, helping to continue the line of children in the family.

During the seder, I think it is important to not only discuss the story of the Exodus, but also where we came from?  Where were we before we even got to Egypt.  When we look back, we read about Avraham standing (nitzavim) before the three guests at the tent.  We read about Leah, as I mentioned earlier and Yosef standing before his brothers as the second to Pharaoh in charge of Egypt.  They were standing up for themselves, but also for others.  

So, as we are about to stand for Vehi Sheamda, I would like to think about what I stand for?  What do I march for?  What promise do I think still holds between all of us and God?  What promise do we need to make sure we keep for each other?

And as we're standing, we usually hold our second glass of wine.  I would like to add a "stand" of fruit to represent the extra sweetness that we can add when we stand together to help to make the world a bit better and continue to help to keep our promises with each other and might I add, to God.