Midnight Margaritas: A Practical Magic Cocktail
Call up your coven and conjure up some cocktail magic with these Practical Magic inspired Midnight Margaritas
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If you’ve ever wanted to make the Midnight Margaritas from Practical Magic, consider this your invitation to call your coven, put Harry Nilsson on, and head for the kitchen.
Created exclusively for The Pagan Grimoire by Julia Halina Hadas, professional mixologist and bestselling author of WitchCraft Cocktails and Mystical Mocktails, this original Midnight Margarita recipe combines tequila, fresh lime, lavender, coconut, and rosewater for a drink inspired by the Owens sisters and the midnight kitchen dance party they have with their beloved aunts.
Lavender brings a little luck to the glass, coconut nods to both the Moon and Harry Nilsson’s classic Coconut song, and rosewater is a reminder to fall in love whenever you can.
It’s named Amas Veritas Midnight Margarita after the love spell Sally creates as a child in Practical Magic. Think of it as part cocktail, part kitchen witchcraft, and a very good excuse to use the blender.
Also, if you love everything Practical Magic-themed, make sure to check out this story about the secrets of the Practical Magic house, including the kitchen where the Midnight Margaritas scene was filmed.
What Do Midnight Margaritas Have to Do with Practical Magic?
The Midnight Margarita scene is one of the fan favorites from the 1998 movie Practical Magic, starring Sandra Bullock as Sally Owens and Nicole Kidman as her sister Gillian.
Late one night in the Owens family kitchen, Aunt Frances (Stockard Channing) and Aunt Jet (Dianne Wiest) break out the blender, tequila, lime, and salt. Sally and Gillian join them as Harry Nilsson’s Coconut plays. For a moment, the four Owens women dance around the kitchen island, drink tequila, and briefly enjoy some fun before the scene takes a darker turn.
Also, as a side note, the famous Midnight Margaritas kitchen scene was created for the film and doesn’t appear in Alice Hoffman’s novel. Margaritas do make an appearance in the book, though: Gillian makes them for Sally, and the sisters drink them together in the garden.
Midnight Margaritas (Amas Veritas Version)
Equipment
- 1 cocktail shaker
- 1 blender optional
Ingredients
- .75 oz lavender syrup
- 1 oz lime freshly juiced
- 1.5 oz tequila
- .5 oz coconut rum liqueur
- 4 dashes rosewater
- 1 wheel lime optional
- 1 spring rosemary optional
Lavender Simple Syrup
- 1 tsp dried lavender food grade
- .3 cup hot water
- .3 cup granulated sugar
Instructions
- Rim your margarita glass with salt by rubbing the outer lip of the glass with a lime wedge clockwise, then dip it into a dish of salt. The lime juice should adhere salt to the glass rim and create your salt circle of protection. Set aside.
- In your shaker or blender, add lavender simple syrup to calm and sweeten.
- Squeeze in lime to cleanse hexes and clear the way.
- Add coconut liqueur and tequila.
- Add a few dashes of rosewater as a reminder to fall in love when you can.
- Add ice and shake. If blending, add 1 cup of ice and blend.
- Pour into your prepared margarita glass. Garnish with a lime wheel and optional rosemary sprig.
Lavender Simple Syrup
- Steep dried lavender flowers in hot water for 5-10 minutes.
- Stir in sugar until dissolved, then strain.
- Store in refrigerator and use within 2 weeks.
Notes
How to Make a Nonalcoholic Midnight Margarita
You can also easily turn this into a Midnight Margarita mocktail. Start by keeping the lime, lavender syrup, rosewater, salt rim, and garnish the same. Replace the tequila with either 1 ounce nonalcoholic tequila spirit or half and ounce or more of soda water.
Replace the coconut rum liqueur with 3/4 ounce of coconut water or 3/4 ounce of nonalcoholic coconut rum like Beckett’s ’27® Coconut Rum. Add additional lime if the drink becomes too sweet, or a little more lavender syrup if it is too tart.
The Magic Behind This Midnight Margarita
A standard margarita is already built around a surprisingly useful collection of magical ingredients: salt, citrus, and spirits. But as Hadas says, “The everyday ingredients of a margarita in the hands of a witch can be made magical. So whether you make this Amas Veritas Midnight Margarita, or just a normal margarita, remember to infuse it with your own magic.”
If you want to learn more about magical herbs, read our guide to magical herbs to plant in your garden. Hadas developed this version using ingredients that reference both Practical Magic and the magical correspondences woven throughout the film.
For more spooky drinks for a witchy or Practical Magic gathering, check out our full collection of Halloween cocktails.
Lavender for Luck
Lavender appears throughout magical traditions in workings connected to peace, purification, protection, love, and luck.
It’s also one of the plants most closely associated with Practical Magic. Sally famously advises planting lavender for luck, which makes lavender simple syrup a particularly fitting addition to an Owens-inspired cocktail. Here, its floral flavor also pairs well as a floral note with the lime and tequila.
Coconut for the Moon
Coconut liqueur gives the margarita a subtle tropical sweetness while nodding to the soundtrack of the Midnight Margaritas scene. In this recipe, Hadas uses coconut as a lunar ingredient, adding a connection to the Moon that watches over Sally throughout the film. Magically, the coconut sometimes represents life, abundance, and transformation.
Lime for Clearing
Citrus fruits are often used in cleansing, purifying, or protection. The use of lime brings that symbolism to this cocktail while also balancing the sweetness of the lavender and coconut.
Rosewater for Love
Rose has centuries of associations with love, beauty, attraction, and the heart. A few dashes of rosewater are enough to bring the floral note into the cocktail without overpowering it. Here, Hadas uses rosewater as a reminder of one of Practical Magic’s most enduring themes: allowing yourself to love despite the risk that inevitably comes with it.
Salt for Protection
Salt has a very long history in purification and protective magic. It can be used in many ways from casting a circle of protection to lining thresholds or working with it in a spell. In the movie, salt is one of the ingredients Aunt Jet and Aunt Frances call for while making their Midnight Margaritas, and elsewhere in Practical Magic Sally reminds us what to always throw spilled salt over your left shoulder. For this version, the traditional margarita salt rim becomes a protective circle around the glass.
Rosemary for Cleansing
Rosemary is traditionally associated with protection, cleansing, and much more. It also fits naturally into the botanical world of the Owens kitchen, where bundles of herbs hang alongside tinctures, dried plants, and the various tools of the aunts’ practice. Use it here as an optional garnish for its aroma as much as its symbolism.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Midnight Margaritas?
They’re the drinks Aunt Frances, Aunt Jet, Sally, and Gillian make during the famous late-night kitchen scene in the film Practical Magic.
What is in the Practical Magic Midnight Margaritas?
The movie references ingredients including tequila, lime, and salt but does not provide viewers with one definitive full recipe. That has led bartenders and fans to create their own interpretations of the drink.
Can you make Midnight Margaritas without alcohol?
Yes. Replace the tequila with a nonalcoholic tequila spirit or soda water and replace the coconut rum liqueur with coconut water or nonalcoholic coconut rum. Keep the lime, lavender syrup, rosewater, salt rim, and garnish.
Can I make Midnight Margaritas ahead of time?
You can prepare the lavender simple syrup ahead of time and refrigerate it for up to two weeks. You can also measure and chill your cocktail ingredients before guests arrive, but wait to shake or blend the margaritas with ice until you’re ready to serve them so they don’t become overly diluted.
Should Midnight Margaritas Be frozen or shaken?
The Midnight Margaritas in Practical Magic are made in a blender, so the frozen version is the obvious choice if you’re recreating the movie-night experience. For a more traditional cocktail, shake the ingredients with ice and serve in a salt-rimmed margarita glass. You’ll get a more classic cocktail with less dilution from the ice.
About Julia Halina Hadas
Julia Halina Hadas is the bestselling author and creator of WitchCraft Cocktails, Mystical Mocktails, Moon, Magic, Mixology, The Modern Witchcraft Book of Astrology, and The Modern Witchcraft Book of Moon Magick. She’s worked at a distillery, as a craft cocktail bartender, and as an energy worker in the Bay Area, blending her knowledge of craft beverages with her magical practice. Suffice it to say, she knows a lot about magic and mixology.
You can find more of Julia’s recipes at WitchcraftCocktails.com including her original Blackberry and Pomegranate Midnight Margaritas, which offer a completely different take on the Practical Magic drink.
Please enjoy alcoholic drinks responsibly.
