Matzo them a denser texture than ordinary baked foods made with flour. Hasidic Jews do not cook with matzo, believing that mixing it with water may allow leavening; this stringency is known as "gebrochts". However, Jews who avoid eating "gebrochts" will eat cooked matzo dishes on the eighth day of Passover outside the Land of Israel, as the eighth day is of rabbinic and not Torah origin. Sephardim use matzo soaked in water or stock to make pies or lasagne, known as "mina", "méguena", "mayena" or . Communion wafers used by the Catholic Church as well as in some Protestant traditions
Matzo to "retain" it in the home. Matzo may be used whole, broken, chopped ("matzo farfel"), or finely ground ("matzo meal") to make numerous matzo-based cooked dishes. These include matzo balls, which are traditionally served in chicken soup; matzo brei, a dish of Ashkenazi origin made from matzo soaked in water, mixed with beaten egg, and fried; matzo pizza, in which the piece of matzo takes the place of pizza crust and is topped with melted cheese and sauce; and kosher for Passover cakes and cookies, which are made with matzo meal or a finer variety called "cake meal" that gives