Prepping for shabbat in our household is almost as fun as shabbat itself. Sure, there’s the normal mad dash to get everything done before shabbat comes in but we’ve split our duties up between household chores (the husband) and cooking (me). The mad dash usually starts with some tunes put on the record player and each of us pouring ourselves a nice cold, adult beverage. For me, its beer (I love beer). For the husband, it’s a mint julip. The man first fell in love with bourbon probably around the age of 5, when ever good Jewish boy takes a sip from his dad’s cup at kiddish, and he’s been in love with it ever since. So much so that for his birthday this year, we toured bourbon county and enjoyed tastings at 5 of the biggest bourbon suppliers in the world. I still haven’t developed a taste for it even though I take the smallest sip every shabbat. Luckily, my brother-in-law discovered sweet tea bourbon for the Southerner in me and now I can enjoy a little bourbon on my shabbat as well.
Mint Julip
Ingredients
- 1 ounce simple syrup (or 1 heaping tablespoon sugar plus 1 tablespoon water)
- 2 cups crushed ice
- 2 ounces bourbon
- Fresh mint sprig, for garnish
2. Crush the ice cubes in a clean, non-terry dish towel, using a hammer. The ice should be finely crushed. Fill the cup with ice to the brim.
3. Pour over the bourbon. Add more ice to fill the cup, garnish with sprigs of mint and plunk in a short straw.
Note: To make 1 cup simple syrup, bring one cup of water to a boil. Stir in 1 cup sugar and boil until the sugar has dissolved. Let cool before using.
