Name: Arugula Pesto
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 1
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: ½ cup walnut or pecan halves, almonds or pepitas; 2 ½ ounces fresh arugula (about 3 cups, loosely packed—thick stems removed if not using baby arugula); ½ cup (1 ¼ ounces) freshly grated Parmesan cheese; 2 medium garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped; 1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice; ¼ teaspoon fine salt, to taste; ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Ingredients

1 serv.

½ cup walnut or pecan halves, almonds or pepitas
2 ½ ounces fresh arugula (about 3 cups, loosely packed—thick stems removed if not using baby arugula)
½ cup (1 ¼ ounces) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 medium garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ teaspoon fine salt, to taste
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Instructions

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1 In a large skillet over medium heat, toast the walnuts, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about three to five minutes. Transfer them to the bowl of a food processor and let them cool for a few minutes.
2 Add the arugula, Parmesan, garlic, 1 tablespoon lemon juice and salt. Process the mixture while drizzling in the olive oil, until it is mostly smooth.
3 Transfer the pesto to a bowl. Taste and add more lemon juice, for zing (up to 1 tablespoon), or salt, for overall flavor. Use as desired. Leftover pesto keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week. Or, freeze it for up to 6 months. (I like to freeze pesto in ice cube trays. Once frozen, pop out the cubes and store in a freezer-safe bag.)