Borough Park, NY – A man has an unorthodox style of preparing for Passover – a backyard bakery.
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Zecheriah Brauner, 89, fires up a huge outdoor oven once a year to make matzo for the Jewish holiday, which starts this Monday.
“My father used to make matzo in our home,” Brauner said, recalling his childhood in rural Hungary. “So let me do what my father used to do.”
A retired baker, Brauner began the tradition of cooking the thin, crispy wafers in his backyard 20 years ago, and it now feeds more than 150 relatives and neighbors.
“It looks like any other driveway the rest of the year,” said Sandy Brauner, 21, one of Zecheriah’s 102 grandchildren. “It takes a lot of work.”
Kosher rules forbid sunlight from shining on the dough, so Sandy rigs a high canopy and wooden walls that block out rays.
Then they build the stations for mixing flour and water, flattening the dough, and rolling it into discs.
A wood- and coal-burning oven sits in a shed and bakes the matzos in under a minute.
Over the afternoon, it churns out hundreds of them for family and friends who flock to the house and serve them at Seder – the feast on the first two nights of Passover.
“Every half step is written out on how to make it,” said Alexander Rapaport, 33, another grandson of Brauner.
Luckily, help is nearby. The family calls 54th St. “Brauner’s block,” because relatives live in eight other houses on the street.
“It gives you a different emotional feeling to eat matzo that you made yourself,” said Yosef Rapaport, 56, Brauner’s son-in-law.
Mr Daily News person didn’t realize that hand matza bakes in about EIGHT or NINE SECONDS.
Wow that’s the way it should be! With matzos prices soooo astronomically expensive. these ovens aren’t that expensive, especially if one considers the amount of families one oven serves.
hand made is not that expensive when you consider the cost that go into this. if you would like a breakdown let me know
Better than the matza baking in the bus.
Kol Hakoved to the Brauner family, very nice.. Reb Zecheriah is a warm and lovely man from der alter hime, one-of-a-kind, may he be Zocah to Arichas Yamim
I would guess that as long a he bakes for friends and family and not for sale he is within NYC Health Department rules. Let him live a long and healthy life and continue his tradition.
“Every half step is written out on how to make it,” said Alexander Rapaport, 33, another grandson of Brauner.”
If this is the same AR that runs Masbia, then Mr. Brauner has taught his family well about the need to give to your community.
We smell your great challahs all year round when we go home from Shomer Shabbos
Good to read a story in the DN that’s not about something negative in our community. If we want positive stories we should participate in bringing that to the fore.
Yes it is the same Alexander Rapaport of Masbia, and if you ask him he will tell you that it was his Zeidi and Bubby Brauner who had an open house for the downtrodden homeless yidden in Boro Park who were guests at every shabbos meal at the Brauners home, that was his inspiration to open Masbia.
I remember when reb Zecharye sent his fresh tasty Bread to our Cheer (elementry school) on those good old days we were in Bourom street 54 years ago. Then we had the same delicious bread in Yeshivah on Sands street 45 years ago.
Hashem yisburach should give you many many more long years of Nachas.
I hope he continues baking matzoh in his backyard for another thirty years