Arugula Pesto

In grad school I worked at a coffee and wine bar in College Station, Terrazzo. In addition to serving gourmet coffee and fine Italian wine, Terrazzo also provided delicious paninis. My favorite panini included prosciutto, mozzarella and arugula pesto. It was divine.

Normally I am not a fan of arugula, it's strong flavor overpowers salads in a way that I do not prefer. But in the pesto, the pepperiness is tampered by the garlic, cheese and olive oil but not eliminated. This batch was used, first as the sauce for pizza, recipe coming tomorrow, and later as spread for a turkey sandwich. In both instances, the stronger flavor from the arugula, as opposed to the basil in most pestos, was able to maintain its strength of flavor without overpowering, as when using fresh arugula, or being overpowered, as with standard basil.

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Arugula Pesto


Ingredients
1 bunch fresh arugula, leaves removed from stems
1/2 cup walnut halves
1/2 cup grated pecorino romano
1/2 cup olive oil
6 garlic cloves, unpeeled
1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions
Heat a dry skillet over medium heat and add the walnuts to toast until fragrant. Remove to a plate. In the same skillet, place the garlic cloves and toast until small brown spots appear, add to the walnuts.

Thoroughly rinse the arugula to remove all dirt, pull leaves from stems and place in the bowl of a food processor.

Add the walnuts.

Peel the garlic and add them to the bowl as well.

Add the cheese and salt.

Turn on the processor then drizzle in the olive oil while running.

Enjoy on a sandwich, as a sauce for pizza, with roasted veggies or with pasta.
Source: Adapted from Simply Recipes