4 oz arugula
3 garlic cloves minced
1/3 cup toasted walnuts
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
4 oz oil
Combine arugula, garlic & walnuts in food processor and chop until the arugula is broken down. Add parmesan cheese, salt & pepper and continue to process until fully incorporated. With food processor running, slowly drizzle in oil until all the oil is added. Yields 1 2/3 cup of pesto.
This pesto can be used for warm or cold pasta dishes, pizza sauces, dips, sandwich spreads, and just about anything else you can dream up.
Farm Vegetable Pasta Salad with Arugula & Walnut Pesto
2 cups cooked pasta ( your choice of pasta)
½-1 cup of arugula & walnut pesto
2 oz blanched green beans
2 oz cherry tomatoes
2 oz sliced carrots
2 oz sliced onions
Shredded parmesan cheese as needed
Cook desired pasta and reserve about ½ cup of the cooking liquid. Cool pasta completely. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except parmesan cheese, starting with ½ cup of the pesto. Depending on how strong the arugula is when you first start will determine how much pesto you will need to use. Taste the pasta salad and determine if you need to add more pesto or not. If the pesto is too thick and does not coat the pasta, add a small amount of the cooking liquid to thin the pasta salad. Yields 3 cups of pasta salad.
