In the United States, fast food conjures up images of everything from burgers and fries to fried chicken or tacos. However, in Italy, fast food can mean anything from a Neapolitan pizza, which is prepared in a jiffy and makes an easily transportable food, to piadina flatbread, a quick meal that has been made for centuries.

Piadina is an unleavened flatbread from the southern part of Emilia Romagna region, and originates as far back as 1200 B.C. The flatbread has origins in poverty and was invented as a way to turn the humble ingredients that poor people had access to into delicious and satisfying meals, similar to the invention of pasta, polenta, and gnocchi.

Piadina is made of a dough that combines flour, lard or olive oil, salt, and a pinch of baking soda, which is then rolled thin and cooked on a griddle or terracotta plate. The piadina bread is folded in half and stuffed with a mixture of cured meats, cheeses, and balsamic vinegar or chocolate, fruit, and whipped cream for a sweet variation.