MIDTOWN — Start your ovens!
Hundreds of young bread-makers will attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the largest baking lesson ever next week with a massive challah bake that has garnered endorsements from celebrities such as Salt N Pepa, "Sharknado" star Ian Ziering and comedian Elon Gold.
On Jan. 12, local students in kindergarten through eighth grade will gather at the New York Hilton hotel on Sixth Avenue after school for the "Kids Mega Challah Bake," in which they will try to break the record set by students from Hong Kong.
The record is currently held by 426 students from the Green Grin Club Limited, Grin Kitchen Limited and Ma On Shan Tsung Tsin secondary school in Hong Kong who learned how to knead and bake dough on Sept. 7, 2013.
A group of New York City-area Jewish mothers cooked up the event, which is expected to include participants from local Jewish organizations, including the Fifth Avenue Synagogue, Sutton Place Synagogue and the Chabad of Battery Park, among others.
They also got support from celebs like Salt N Pepa and Ziering, who recorded videos explaining their love of challah.
“There is something very special and unifying about so many children, from so many backgrounds, coming together and doing a mitzvah,” Gillie Shanowitz, a mother of three who works in Chelsea, said in a statement released by the organizers, who hope the event will draw as many as 1,000 aspiring bakers.
As of Friday, 609 children from 28 different groups were signed up to participate, the event's website said.
During the baking session, students will learn how to make challah — a braided bread that is traditionally served on the Jewish Sabbath, as well as other Jewish holidays.
The lesson will carry “added significance” because it falls during the year of Hakhel, which takes place every seven years and focuses on “unity and learning” within the Jewish community, organizers said.
“It’s going to be a record smashing evening — something these girls and boys will remember for a long time,” organizer and Midtown-based mother Bryce Gruber said in a statement.
The challah bake will start at 4 p.m. Tickets are $15 per child or $10 per child at a group rate.
