-
Step 1
Purchase or create a Hagaddah. In the 17th century, the famous Kabbalistic rabbi Isaac Luria created a seder to accompany the celebration of Tu B’Shvat. This seder includes the recitation of blessings, the drinking of four cups of wine, and the consumption of traditional Israeli crops, among other things. You can find pre-made Tu B’Shvat haggadot in Judaica stores, or you can make your own.
-
Step 2
Plan your menu around the traditional foods of Israel. On Tu B’Shvat, one is supposed to consume pomegranates, dates, barley, wheat, figs, olives and grapes. Other foods, such as carob, have Kabbalistic symbolism and are included in Luria’s seder.
-
Step 3
Buy wine. There are increasing numbers of decent to good kosher wines if that matters to you.
-
Step 4
Decorate! There are countless choices for decorations on your Tu B’Shvat table; you could cover the table with vines and plants, create a cornucopia of fruits, or have your kids hang up pictures of trees. However you decorate, try to engender a feeling of connectedness to nature.
-
Step 5
Connect to the environmental aspect of Tu B’Shvat. Since the holiday has become a day of creating awareness about environmental issues, this is a good time to talk about (and act on) aspects of environmentalism that are important to you. Plant trees in Israel for your guests, or encourage each guest to make an environmentally conscious change in his home.
-
Step 6
Be environmentally friendly. There is not much point in talking about environmental issues when your seder itself hurts the environment. Try to practice good stewardship by buying local or organic produce where possible (this will be difficult for the Israeli fruits that are out of season in the US), use re-washable plates and so forth.
