I was researching panini and Piadina or Piada kept coming up. It is a thin flatbread made in Italy typically prepared in the Romagna region. It is usually made with white flour, lard or olive oil, salt and water. The dough was traditionally cooked on a terracotta dish, although nowadays flat pans or electric griddles are commonly used. It looked something like a “quick sammie” that I make at home for the kidlets but this version uses no yeast so it is an unleavened version of this.
So, searching for what to call this has left me stumped. It’s not a panino because that means it’s made with a bun. It’s not a pizza because we are going to split it open and fill it with glorious stuff. So, I’m just gonna call it a sammie…a crisp, warm, fresh, “hot out of the oven” sammie using two simple tricks…use raw dough and heat up your panini press!
How you serve it is up to you. Once it’s cooked (which literally takes a minute), it can be cooked, filled and folded or cooked and opened – like it is here. You can fill it with sweet stuff (like Nutella and strawberries…a favourite in my household) of savoury fillings like this! And, make it easy on yourself…use store bought pizza dough!
My Favourite Italian Sammie:
1 pkg pizza dough (raw)
250 g thinly sliced prosciutto
small round of brie, sliced
small bunch of arugula
1/4 c fig jam (I make my own but you can find store bought…often found, strangely enough, in the deli section of some supermarkets)
- Heat a pannini grill (this can also be done on a bbq). Tear off a small piece of the raw dough and stretch it out. Place it on the grill and close it for a few minutes (until it gets golden brown).
- Remove it from the grill and slice it open (horizontally); it will be warm and soft on the inside! Spread half with the fig jam. Place a handful of arugula on the bottom of the other half, and then top with a few slices of prociutto, and a few slices of creamy brie. Close it up and munch away…incredibly easy, super fast and crazy good!
Enjoy!
