This plate is different from all other plates
If you were allowed to put an extra item on the Seder plate, what would you choose? Simon Rocker asked five rabbis
Edgware United Synagogue
MY CHOICE would be chocolate. It is a luxury food that cheers people up, and it is an appropriate adjunct to the life of happiness and freedom to which Pesach calls us.
In addition, chocolate is a food that bespeaks cross-cultural friendship, since it originated with the Aztecs (who made a cacao-based beverage called xocolatl) but gained its current form through Europeans, who added refined sugar and milk, and is now appreciated worldwide. This expresses the vision of all nations bonded together in the service of God which is the endgame of Judaism.
Not all the foods on the Seder plate are eaten, but I would rule that a vast stack of chocolate be placed on the plate and eaten towards the end of the meal within n i n e mi n u t e s ( t h e halachic time limit within which t he minimum amounts of matzah and of maror should be eaten) i n order t o e n h a n c e p a r t i c i p a n t s ’ enjoyment of Yomtov. Wimbledon Reform Synagogue
I would choose a pomegranate. As one of the seven species the Bible tells us about growing in the land of Israel, it is a reminder of the connection to the Land to which I remain spiritually attached.
Tradition tells us that a pomegranate has 613 seeds, equivalent to the mitzvot. I like that the mitzvot are likened to the jewelled seeds, and the implication of richness and nourishment within them.
The Bible tells us that Aaron wore a special garment as High Priest, and it was decorated with alternate bells and pomegranates on the hem, so that when he moved the sounds of these objects clashing would be heard and people would know he would be safe — indeed the bible is starkly clear — “so that he will not die”.
Another tradition tells us that the forbidden fruit eaten by Eve in Eden was not the apple, but the pomegranate. If it is truly the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, it would be a potent reminder at Seder that we have choices in what we do, a freedom in our lives with consequent responsibilities.