Gorgeously GREEN Arugula Pesto

Saint Patrick's Day is just around the corner. Nope, I'm not Irish. (I've had my DNA tested so I'm fairly certain...) But you don't have to be Irish to love corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, and Guinness. I'm planning to stock up on all of these! But I have another suggestion for bringing in the green:

Instead of celebrating with green beer, cupcakes, or Shamrock Shakes at McDonald's, how about making some truly beautiful emerald green pesto?

I found a fantastic bargain on arugula and purchased a very large bag for only 99 cents. I ate a few enormous salads, but it became clear to me that I would need to do something with these spicy greens that didn't involve me chomping down every single leaf. Don't get me wrong, I love arugula in a salad. But one ginormous salad per day is pretty much my limit.

Then I remembered seeing recipes for arugula pesto.

If you google it, you'll get quite a few options. I looked them over, then decided to wing it. I make pesto all the time, so I figured I'd throw a bunch of stuff in and taste. It worked out just fine!

The amounts listed for this recipe are approximate, at best. Don't worry about measuring anything. Mix up a batch and taste as you go. If you like the results, who cares if you followed the recipe? The next time you make it, it might taste slightly different, but that's the beauty of improvisation!

Ingredients:

1/2-1 cup walnut halves- or any other nuts you prefer

1/4 cup pepitas, raw (pumpkin seeds)- optional

1 heaping TB hemp seeds- optional

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

2 teaspoons chopped garlic

6 cups (more or less) arugula

1/2 - 1 cup avocado oil - or extra virgin olive oil

In the bowl of a large food processor, add nuts and seeds along with salt. Pulse until nuts are finely chopped. Add the remaining ingredients in the order given. Pulse until well combined. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl and then pulse some more. If the mixture is too thick, add more oil. Taste for seasoning and add salt if needed. Serve on top of salmon steaks, burgers, pasta, chicken breasts, minestrone, or anything you like! Makes about 1.5 cups of pesto.

NOTE: I never add cheese to my pesto. This makes it great for everyone, including vegans. I like to add cheese on top when I'm serving. Feel free to add your cheese whenever!!