From pineapple toppings to Chicago-style deep dish, pizza is one of the most beloved and variated foods in the United States. However, when it comes to authentic Italian pizza, the dish seems almost unrecognizable, particularly if you encounter Rome’s pizza bianca, which you might not even recognize as pizza.

Pizza bianca translates to "white pizza" in Italian, but despite the name, pizza bianca is more similar to focaccia than to the saucy, cheesy pie that probably comes to mind. The dish is essentially a light, chewy flatbread brushed with olive oil, sea salt, and sometimes rosemary, and most importantly it’s always served hot, as in, fresh-out-of-the-oven.

Pizza bianca was created as a way for Roman bakers to test the temperature of their ovens before putting in an actual pizza with valuable toppings. The pizza is often served as a pre-dinner aperitif with wine, and occasionally it will have minimal seasonal toppings like figs, prosciutto, broccoli rabe, chard or mozzarella, or sliced in half and served with mortadella.