Pear and Gorgonzola Flatbread

Grilling vegetables over direct heat increases the bioavailability of certain antioxidants by breaking down cell walls and making their contents more accessible — while the brief, high-heat cooking minimizes the loss of water-soluble vitamins that longer, lower-temperature cooking methods produce. The char that develops on grilled vegetables, while containing small amounts of heterocyclic compounds, also contains significant concentrations of beneficial phytonutrients produced by the caramelization of plant sugars. Marinating proteins before grilling — particularly with acidic marinades containing lemon juice or vinegar — has been shown to significantly reduce the formation of potentially harmful compounds produced when fat drips onto hot coals, making the marinated and grilled preparation one of the more nutritionally sound applications of high-heat cooking.