This Italian flatbread recipe or Piadina is a yeast-free bread made from a few simple ingredients. It is rich, crispy, fragrant at every bite, and tastes delicious. Ready to replace your pizza night!

This piadina recipe is quite different from the well know Romagna piada style, this is from Urbino, a beautiful Renaissance city known to be the birthplace of the painter Raphael. This delicious piada called Crescia Sfogliata dates back to 1400 during the Montefeltro dukes.

INGREDIENTS:

• 440 gr plain flour
• 1 medium eggs room temperature
• 150 gr whole milk
• 50 gr water room temperature
• 1 gr ground black pepper
• 5 gr salt
• 100 gr lard room temperature

METHOD:

Make the dough

• Add the flour, the egg, salt, black peppers, milk, and water in a medium bowl. Alternatively, use a stand mixer to make the dough. Mix all the ingredients with a fork very quickly, once all the ingredients are combined together pour it on a work surface. Work the dough until you have a smooth ball, cover it with some cling film or cloth. Leave it to rest for 1 hour.

Divide the dough

• Divide the dough into 5 balls of 135 gr each.

Roll the balls

• Dust the work surface and the top of the ball with some flour. Roll each ball to approximately 27 cm in diameter with a rolling pin. Keep dusting with some flour if too sticky. Spread the lard on each ball very gently with a round tip knife, making sure to don’t break the layer of the dough.

• Roll the piada on itself, then pull the sides with your hands. Don’t pull too hard or it will break. When you have a long tube-like, start by twisting it and rolling it on itself to make a snail shape.

• Cover the snails with cling film and leave them to rest in the fridge from 1 up to 48hours. The resting time depends on the time you have. The more it stays in the fridge, the more crispy will be.

Roll the piadina

• Dust the work surface and the top of the snails with some flour. Now, roll each snail to approximately 26 cm diameter and 3 mm thin with a rolling pin. Keep dusting with some flour if too sticky. Don’t over-roll up the snail, it shouldn’t be very thin. Store the round bases on a plate with a dust of flour, to prevent them from sticking to each other.

Toast the piadina

• Heat a medium non-stick frying pan on medium heat. Once the pan is hot, just place the piadina in the pan. Turn over the piada once it is starting to get bubbles on the surface and it is turning golden-brown under, about 2 minutes. Use a spatula to flip it over. Watch the cooking of the piada to prevent burning it. Have a look every now and then on the down side to see if it is turning black. Turn down the heat if is too hot.
• Now cook it for further 2 minutes to the other side. Cover the piadina with a kitchen towel while toasting the others, this will keep them warm.

Serve them

• Serve the piada with cheese, cured meat, and veggie.

Suggestions for the filling

The classic is Parma ham or bresaola with rocket (arugula) and stracchino (or any other soft cheese). Another great match would be stir-fried greens or grilled veggies with roasted sausage and pecorino cheese. Again, stir-fried greens or grilled veggies with pecorino or any other soft cheese.

Recipe from Fede The Clumsy Chef