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Arugula pesto pasta in a small bowl.
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5 from 1 vote

Easy Arugula Pesto Pasta Recipe

This 10-ingredient arugula pasta is tossed in arugula pesto you can make in minutes in a food processor. It has walnuts, lemon and garlic.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time14 minutes
Total Time19 minutes
Course: Pasta
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 4
Author: Paige Adams

Ingredients

  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 4 cups baby arugula
  • 1/4 cup walnuts
  • 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan plus more for serving
  • Juice and zest of 1 lemon
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 8 ounces linguine or spaghetti

Instructions

  • Finely chop the garlic cloves in a food processor. Add 2 cups arugula, walnuts, Parmesan, lemon juice, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Chop everything. Then while the motor is running, drizzle in the olive oil through the feeder tube until the pesto is fully combined.
  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until just al dente according to package instructions. Save 1/2 cup pasta cooking water. Drain in a colander.
  • Warm the arugula pesto in a large skillet over medium heat for 1-2 minutes. Stir in the pasta and the reserved pasta cooking water. The pesto will become creamy as it coats the noodles.
  • Fold in 2 cups arugula and the lemon zest.
  • Top with additional grated Parmesan before serving.

Notes

You can use short pasta such as penne or fusilli. I recommend these if you are planning to eat the leftovers cold as a pasta salad.
Pine nuts or almonds are good substitutes for walnuts.
You can make the pesto up to 5 days in advance. Store it in a jar in the fridge.
Leftovers of the assembled pasta can be stored in the refrigerator up to 3 days. If you keep it longer than that, the pasta will get soft.

Nutrition

Calories: 1806kcal | Carbohydrates: 182g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 102g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 23g | Monounsaturated Fat: 57g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 1647mg | Potassium: 1017mg | Fiber: 11g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 2272IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 441mg | Iron: 6mg