Back to Articles

THE CHILI PEPPER DIET   By Sheilah Kaufman

What's red, green, and gold, can be found for less than a dollar at the grocery store, and holds the key to permanent weight loss and great health???????? Chili peppers!!!!!

Long known by indigenous people as a sacred plant, these magical peppers are becoming the "hottest" breakthrough in weight loss and health, for good reason. From habaneros to jalapenos, pasillas to pasados, there's scientific evidence that chili peppers can "curb your appetite; burn fat; restore your immune system; lower cholesterol levels; increase metabolism; lower blood pressure; reduce your response to stress, and as a by product of all this can help prevent cancer. The secret is Capsaicin, an active chemical in chili peppers that makes you feel better both physically and mentally.

THE CHILI PEPPER DIET (By Heidi Allison, Health Communications, Inc. Deerfield Beach, Fla. 400 pages $12.95) features the hot new way to lose weight and feel great. In it Heidi Allison shares the diet she developed. Unlike other diets that turn you into a compulsive calorie counter or leave your stomach on "permanent growl" the CHILI PEPPER DIET allows you to eat tasty foods in satisfying portions. The book includes a colorful section of color photographs that educate you on the many varieties of chili peppers, including their associated heat levels, flavors, and culinary uses. There are easy to follow hot hints on how to incorporate chilies into your diet even if you dislike spicy foods, and there is a 3 week menu plan of 80 simple yet scrumptious recipes with a workbook to track your eating patterns, food triggers and responses to stress. Read this and discover the secret to a hot new you! 

CARRIBBEAN JERK CHICKEN

The secret to this recipe is using dark rum and fresh lime juice. Use leftovers in a chicken salad or sandwich the following day for a quick and easy lunch.

  • 4 small chicken breasts with bone, skin left on
  • 2 oz. Meyer's Dark Rum
  • juice of 6 fresh limes
  • 12 oz jar Uncle Bum's Hot Jamaican Marinade*

Press each breast with a fork 5 to 6 times through the skin and into the meat.
In a small bowl, add rum and lime juice to marinade. Mix to blend.
Pour marinade over chicken and marinate for 2 to 6 hours.
BBQ at 350F, skin side up, until juices run clear and meat is no longer pink - about 30 minutes. Remove the skin before eating.

Serves 4.

*800-486-2867 Uncle Bum's
 

SPICY CITRUS DRESSING

This recipe has a tangy and slightly sweet flavor that works equally well with a chicken or melon salad. The secret ingredient to this dressing's greatness is the lime zest.

  • 2 teaspoons grated lime peel, green part only
  • 1/ 2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 2 green onions, tops only, minced (about 2 TBL)
  • juice of 1 fresh lime (about 3 TBL)
  • 1 tablespoon minced cilantro
  • 1 fresh serrano chili, seeded and minced
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin (for poultry salad)

Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Refrigerate 3 hours to let the flavors "marry." Will keep, refrigerated, for 4 to 5 days.  

CILANTRO CHUTNEY

With a medium heat level, this chutney is great for cutting the rich taste of oily fish, and also doubles as a refreshing topping for potatoes.

  • 1/ 2 teaspoon salt
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 1 large cilantro
  • 4 serrano chilies
  • ¼ cup water
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin

Pulverize salt and garlic in a mortar to form a paste.
Put cilantro, chilies, water, sugar, cumin, and lime juice into blender and grind to form a paste.
Add garlic/salt mixture to cilantro mixture and blend.
Makes 2 servings.

 
Back to Articles