Arugula Macnut Pesto

Recently, I had the incredible opportunity to tour the Vicki Jean Leather Design Co. studio in Hāwī and after learning all about how Vicki combines style and function into one-size-fits-all fashion for an upcoming Kona Coast City Lifestyle article, Vicki herself sent me home with loads of apple bananas and arugula! I froze most of the apple bananas for my breakfast smoothies, enjoyed a week’s worth of arugula mason jar salads, and made several batches of pesto with the rest. Since we had mac nuts leftover over from an ahi meal my husband made, I used those instead of walnuts. If you have basil on hand, consider swapping out the 2 cups of arugula for 1 cup arugula + 1 cup basil.

Ingredients

1/2 cup shelled mac nuts, pieces or crushed (I toast the nuts in a pan over medium heat until lightly brown)

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan reggiano

1/2 teaspoon Hawaiian sea salt

5 garlic cloves

2 cups arugula (stems removed)

1/2 cup mac nut oil (or olive oil)

Optional: A teaspoon Hawaiian chili pepper water or 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper for some heat

Instructions

Combine the arugula, mac nuts, sea salt, and garlic cloves in a Vitamix, food processor, or blender.

Pulse while slowly pouring the oil into the mixture, followed by the parmesan. Taste and add garlic salt or crushed red pepper if you’d like it spicier.

The result is a vibrant green pesto that is perfect as a pasta sauce or on a grilled mozzarella and sourdough bread sandwich - Enjoy!