Cranking Up the Heat with Chipotle Coleslaw

It's well known that when it's hot outside, eating spicy food will cool you down. That's why notoriously hot spots serve up some of the hottest food around.

I'm thinking of all those delicious and fiery Indian and Thai curries, Mexican salsas, Jamaican Jerks, North African Harissa and of course, my adopted Cajun eats.

Adding heat to food isn't only about kicking up your metabolism and firing up that internal air conditioning (hot foods cool us off), but peppers and pepper products have immense health benefits.

Capsaicin, a natural property in hot peppers, is a know anti-inflamatory and adding hot peppers to your diet can provide relief from rheumatoid arthritis, lower your blood sugar and cholesterol, prevent heart disease, heal an ulcer, and even promote weight loss. An added benefit is capsaicin releases endorphins, creating a sense of well being; it's also a natural pain killer and it stimulates your circulation.

So if you're hot today, whip up a batch of my highly addictive and super hot (you can tone it down) Chipotle Coleslaw and give your taste buds an awakening.



Chipotle Coleslaw


Salad
1 medium head of green cabbage, finely shredded
1 small red onion, finely diced
1 bunch of fresh cilantro, picked, washed, and finely chopped (reserve some for garnish)
2 apples (Fuji, Green, Gala) cored, coarsely chopped
4 stalks of celery, cleaned and finely chopped (I like to pick inner stalks with some leaves on them)
Small handful of shredded carrots, or one medium carrot, finely shredded

Dressing
2 T. sugar
1/3 cup low fat yogurt (you can use Greek yogurt for added creaminess)
1/4 to 1/3 cup of light mayo (I love the Kraft Mayo with Olive Oil)
1 HEAPING T. of chipotle peppers packed in adobo sauce (I scoop up as much additional adobo as possible; I also leave my seeds in the peppers because I like a lot of heat)
Apple cider vinegar to thin (about 1/4 cup total)
1 T. Celery seeds
1 heaping teaspoon of Chipotle Ground Chili
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Mix dressing ingredients into bowl or container. I like to use a square plastic container big enough to fit all of my ingredients into.
2. Taste dressing and make sure it's to your liking; I like mine to be super hot to start, because once it sets and 'wilts' the vegetables, the heat does tend to drop a few notches.
3. Toss in slaw ingredients and turn to coat with dressing.
4. Continue to stir every 10-15 minutes until wilted, but crisp.
5. Top with reserved, chopped cliantro.
6. Enjoy!

*Note: This slaw can be very spicy, but I swear it's so addictive. Once your body (and taste buds become acclimated to the heat, you will CRAVE this stuff, so be dully warned.