Piadina with Prosciutto, Squacquerone, and Arugula

Piadina is not a wrap. It is not a tortilla. It is not flatbread in any generic sense. It is the bread of Romagna, and only Romagna, a thin disc made with flour, lard, salt, and water, cooked on a hot griddle until it blisters and chars in spots. To call it anything else is to misunderstand what you are eating.

The filling I give you here is the classic, the one you find at every piadineria from Rimini to Cesena. Squacquerone is the cheese, soft and spreadable and slightly sour, made only in this region. The prosciutto is sliced thin and laid on cold. The arugula provides the bite. That is all. Americans want to add things. Resist this impulse.

My grandmother made piadina on a testo, a thick terracotta disc that held heat like nothing else. You may use a cast iron griddle or a heavy skillet. What matters is that the surface is dry and very hot. The piadina should cook quickly, developing those characteristic brown spots while staying pliable enough to fold.