4 Passover cocktails to try this year

Put the 4 cups aside and treat yourself to something a little more festive this Passover.

Mitzrayim Mule

This custom creation comes from the queen of @jewishcocktails herself, Dammara Rose. A fresh take on a classic, the Mitzrayim Mule features a spicy ginger syrup and garnish to remind you of the “maror” (bitterness) of slavery. Best served over ice (a nod to the seventh plague, hail).

Mitzrayim Mule

2 oz Vodka (kosher for Passover, of course!)

1 oz Spicy Ginger Syrup*

¾ oz Fresh Lime Juice

5 Mint Leaves

Garnish: Crystallized Ginger*

Directions

1. Combine mint leaves and lime juice in a shaker and muddle.
2. Add ice into the shaker and pour in the ginger syrup and vodka. Shake vigorously until chilled.
3. Strain into a glass with ice and garnish with crystallized ginger and mint leaves.

* Homemade crystallized ginger + ginger syrup:

1. Peel the ginger and slice it to approximately 1/8th of an inch thick.
2. Cover the ginger with water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil.
3. Let simmer for 25 minutes.
4. Add 2 cups of sugar to the pot, bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer for 40 minutes. stirring occasionally. You are looking for a syrup consistency.
5. Drain the ginger but keep the liquid — this is your spicy ginger syrup.
6. Place the ginger slices on a cooling rack and let sit for 1 hour.
7. Toss the cooled ginger pieces in sugar to coat all the sides. (Hot ginger will cause the sugar to disintegrate.) 

Makat Bechorot (Death of the First Born)

Turn up the heat with this spicy tequila cocktail and get ready to sweat (like a Jew wandering in the desert for 40 years).

2 oz Tequila (based on agave)

1 oz Lime Juice

1 oz Orange Juice

2+ Jalapeño Slices (more=spicier)

Garnish: Lime Wedge

Directions:

1. Muddle your jalapeño slices in the bottom of a shaker to release their flavor. 
2. Add ice and the rest of the ingredients and shake well. 
3. Strain and garnish with a lime wedge.

Chatzot

With this espresso-based martini, you won’t have any trouble staying awake until the end of seder.

2 oz Vodka

1 oz Espresso (or strongly brewed coffee)

1 oz Coffee Liqueur (this is tricky to find kosher for Passover, so feel free to omit)

Optional: ½ oz Simple Syrup*

Garnish: Whole Coffee Beans

Directions:

1. Add all the ingredients to a shaker full of ice and shake vigorously
2. Strain and garnish with coffee beans

* Simple syrup: bring equal parts sugar and water to a boil and cook until it’s reduced by half. Let cool before using.

EGGS-odus

More than just the perfect pun, this cocktail will leave your guests marvelling in awe like you just brought 10 plagues to Egypt and freed a nation.

2 oz Gin (Distillery 209 makes a great one for Passover)

1 oz Lemon Juice 

1 tsp Sugar

1 Egg White

Splash of Seltzer

Garnish: Lemon or Lime Wedge

Directions: 

1. Add gin, juice, sugar, and egg white into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
2. Shake vigorously. The more you shake, the foamier the egg white.
3. Strain into a glass with ice.
4. Top with seltzer and garnish with a lemon slice 

A huge thank you to Dammara Rose for sharing her brilliance with us. If you’d like to see her other creations, join the Jewish Cocktails Facebook Group or follow her on insta @jewishcocktails | @dammararose.