Recipe: Emmalyn's Arugula Walnut Pesto
Pesto is classically thought of as a paste made with Genovese basil. It’s interesting we think of pesto as being made only with basil. There are plenty of pastes made with herbs and oil across many cuisines. Why not arugula? It’s great on pasta and grains or by itself on a nice piece of crusty bread.
Ingredients:
2 garlic cloves, cut in half
2 heaped tablespoons shelled walnuts
2 cups leaves arugula, stemmed, washed and tightly packed
½ teaspoon salt
⅓ to ½ cup extra virgin olive oil, as needed *Don’t use a sharp olive oil with this, or it will overwhelm the arugula*
⅓ to ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan, to taste
Process:
Turn on a food processor and drop in the garlic cloves. When they are chopped and adhering to the sides, stop the machine, scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the walnuts.
Turn on the machine, and process until they are finely ground. Scrape down the bowl again.
Add the arugula and the salt. Pulse until the arugula is finely chopped, then turn on the machine and run while you slowly drizzle in the olive oil.
When the mixture is smooth, stop the machine, scrape down the sides and process for another 30 seconds or so. Work in the cheese and combine well.