Leftover Walnuts = Dinner

After the Crush Berry Tart, I had lots of extra walnuts hanging out on my little cabinet I often call a pantry. I desperately wanted to use my new microplane that I bought with my first paycheck, but grating walnuts is not the best thing if you enjoy having fingertips. So my mind starts going into dinner-mode and had a serious of linkages that sounded something like this:

Walnuts. Grating. Fingertips. Ouch. Grating. Cheese. (goes to fridge to get cheese) sees: Arugula.

It didn't take long for my brain to then put together walnuts and arugula flavor-wise and arrive at pesto. Pesto is traditionally and most often made with basil and pine nuts, but arugula can be substituted for the basil and walnuts for the pine nuts to add some variation on the classic. The other components are olive oil, garlic, and parmesan cheese that is all whizzed around in a blender (or ground with mortar and pestle) until it becomes a lovely sauce. Since I own neither of these two devices, I went for a "decomposed" pesto which sounds slightly more gourmet and slightly more like rotting detritus. Nevertheless, it was delicious and the perfect quick weeknight meal.

• 1 cup Whole Wheat Rotelle Pasta
• 1 small handful of chopped Walnuts
• 1 Roma Tomato, coarsely chopped
  
• 1 large handful of Arugula
• 1 clove of Garlic, minced
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Sea Salt and Pepper
• Grana Padona or Parmigiano Cheese

Boil lots of water over high heat. Salt generously. Add pasta, giving it a quick stir.

In a clean skillet, toast the walnuts until they are fragrant and just golden brown. Remove and set aside. Add a couple of good pours of olive oil to the skillet and toss in your chopped garlic. Be careful not to burn it over too high of heat. Add in the chopped tomatoes, and then the arugula. At this point your pasta should be ready, but hopefully you've been checking for the al dente texture through out your cooking process. Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet. Toss until the arugula begins to wilt. Add in the toasted walnuts, and season with sea salt and good fresh cracked pepper. Grate a generous helping of cheese over the top.

The nuts really make this a complete meal by adding lots of healthy proteins and fat, contributing to your "fullness factor". The whole meal takes just about 15 minutes to prepare from the second you start your water to boil. Life doesn't get much simpler, or tasty, than that!