Friday recipes; or Fricipes

I can't get spring out of my head. A garden. The CSA. Salad at every meal.

I guess by spring, I actually mean food.

There's nothing better to me than fresh veggies prepared in all kinds of ways. It's my comfort food and there's no reason little kids won't love it as well.

So, in honor of spring, I'll make Friday's recipe days. I hope to include all my favorite dishes that are both healthy and delicious.

And to start, in honor of the spring that hasn't quite arrived, let's try an arugula pesto which is a little less expensive (and has a prettier, brighter green color) than it's basil counterpart.

1 clove garlic
1 bunch of arugula
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup walnuts (toasted pine nuts work as well)
1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese (fresh is best, but the other stuff works too)
1/4 cup of olive oil (the better the oil, the better your pesto)
Salt and pepper to taste

I just use the food processor to make light work of this dish. Process the garlic, followed by the nuts. (You can toast both if you're feeling fancy.) Add the arugula and cheese and drizzle oil as you process until the pesto is smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

If you're using this as a pizza topping (no kid in her right mind would say no to pesto pizza) just substitute tomato sauce for the pesto.

With pasta, I like to add a quarter cup of risotto cheese to give it a creamy texture. I find rotini pasta works best.

Oh my gosh... I am so hungry right now. Hey spring, where are you?