Homemade Matzo

Light, flaky, and crisp — homemade matzo is a world apart from store-bought.

To be honest, homemade matzo has never been at the top of my list of recipes to try, but when I braved the grocery store this week to get my Passover staples—brisket (for my go-to holiday brisket recipe), horseradish, matzo meal, etc.—there was no matzo to be had. It didn’t feel right to celebrate Passover without matzo, so I decided to attempt a homemade version. My first batch was rock-hard and tasted like cardboard (which you could argue sounds about right!). My second batch was tasty but so crisp and delicate that it shattered into a million crumbs when I took a bite. Finally, my third batch, an olive-oil enriched matzo adapted from Mark Bittman’s recipe in the New York Times, was flaky, tender, and perfectly crisp. I love this recipe! The dough is a pleasure to work with, and the matzos bake in just five minutes. (Note that homemade matzo is not kosher for Passover, so observant Jews might try this recipe outside of the Passover holiday.)

What you’ll need to make homemade matzo

You need four simple ingredients — all-purpose flour, salt, olive oil, and water.

How to make homemade matzo

To begin, combine the flour, salt and olive oil in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Once the food processor is on, add 1/2 cup water. Continue to run the food processor until dough forms a firm ball, rides around on the blade and is not at all sticky, about 2 minutes.

Place the dough on a clean spot on your kitchen counter. Cut the dough into 12 small balls — this is easiest if you cut the ball in half, then in half again, then into thirds. On a lightly-floured surface, flatten each ball into a 3-inch patty.

Use a rolling pin to roll each patty into a 6- to 8-inch circle. The shapes can be irregular, but the dough should be so thin you can almost see through it. Put a few pieces of the rolled out dough on the prepared baking sheet. (I can usually fit about three.) Prick the dough all over with a fork.

Bake in a 500°F-oven for 2 to 4 minutes, keeping a very close eye on them, until they are golden and puffed in spots.

Flip the matzos and cook for 1 to 2 minutes more, until lightly golden all over.

Let the matzos cool and enjoy.