Linguine with Creamy Arugula Walnut Pesto
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Adapted from an Anne Burrell recipe, this creamy twist on pesto pasta is delicious and super quick to make.
I love Anne Burrell’s recipes, and this pasta dish, adapted from her cookbook Cook Like a Rock Star: 125 Recipes, Lessons, and Culinary Secrets (Clarkson Potter, 2011), is one of my favorites. It’s a creamy twist on pesto pasta, and it’s super quick to make — you can have it on the table in 25 minutes, tops. While the pasta cooks, you whip up a pesto with toasted walnuts, peppery arugula, sharp cheese, and garlic. When the pasta is ready, you toss it with the pesto, a bit of cream, and some of the pasta cooking water for a lusciously rich and flavorful dish.
What You’ll Need To Make Linguine with Creamy Arugula Walnut Pesto
Step-By-Step Instructions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the linguine and cook according to package instructions until al dente.
Meanwhile, place the walnuts on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 6 to 7 minutes, or until fragrant.
In a food processor, combine the toasted walnuts, arugula, garlic, pecorino Romano, Parmigiano Reggiano, salt, and pepper.
Process until the mixture resembles a coarse paste.
While the machine is running, drizzle in the olive oil through the feed tube until the mixture is mostly smooth.
Reserve about 1½ cups of the pasta cooking water, then drain the linguine in a colander.
Combine the pesto, cream, 1/2 cup of the cooking water, and drained linguine in a large saucepan.
Toss over medium heat until the pasta is evenly coated with the sauce and warmed through. Add more pasta water as necessary to thin the sauce.
Serve immediately and enjoy!
You May Also Like
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Linguine with Creamy Arugula Walnut Pesto
Adapted from an Anne Burrell recipe, this creamy twist on pesto pasta is delicious and super quick to make.
Ingredients
- 1 pound linguine
- 1 cup walnuts
- 3 cups baby arugula
- 1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
- ½ cup grated pecorino Romano cheese
- ½ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper for easy clean up.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the linguine and cook according to package instructions until al dente.
- Meanwhile, place the walnuts on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 6 to 7 minutes, or until fragrant.
- In a food processor, combine the toasted walnuts, arugula, garlic, pecorino Romano, Parmigiano Reggiano, salt, and pepper. Process until the mixture resembles a coarse paste. While the machine is running, drizzle in the olive oil through the feed tube until the mixture is mostly smooth.
- Reserve about 1½ cups of the pasta cooking water, then drain the linguine in a colander.
- Combine the pesto, cream, and ½ cup of the cooking water in a 12-inch saucepan. Add the drained linguine and toss over medium heat until the pasta is evenly coated with the sauce and warmed through. Add more pasta water as necessary to thin the sauce. Serve immediately.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 526
- Fat: 24 g
- Saturated fat: 10 g
- Carbohydrates: 58 g
- Sugar: 3 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 18 g
- Sodium: 341 mg
- Cholesterol: 47 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This pesto is so good. Aurugula and roasted walnuts are great combo. For pasta I didn’t have heavy cream, used milk with cornstarch instead and it worked well.
Interesting riff on basic pesto made with basil but could you please give amount of arugula or other greens you use in recipes (like kale for example) in weight. 3 cups can be a lot or a little depending on how tightly it’s packed.
Hi Susanna, The great majority of my recipes (including this one) include conversions to metric/weight measurements. To view them, scroll down to the recipe, and immediately under the recipe title on the right side, you’ll see a little toggle. If you move it from “cup measures” to metric, you’ll see measurements that will work for you. Hope that helps!
Will it work to make ahead up to the step where everything is blended in food processor?
Sure, but I’d hold off on cooking the pasta until you’re ready to serve it. Hope you enjoy!
Loved this so much and have already recommended to many! The arugula is such a yummy flavor in this and makes the dish unique. Would add roasted tomatoes on top with chicken/steak for a very hearty meal!
I make pesto quite often, never used arugula before, loved the peppery nutty flavour of this. I sauted a can of clams, some crimini mushrooms and some green onions and added it to this and it was fabulous!
It was the first time for me to make pesto ,wow it was a success plus my husband loved it.
Merci
This was simply delicious. I used walnut oil instead of olive oil. Also, I added extra pasta water and used have the linguini noodles because I wanted to have more sauce with my noodles. It truly is a recipe that you can alter for your own liking!
Made this and served with a grilled chicken breast. Absolutely to die for! I was looking for a “different” sauce than my normal red or pesto. I would never have thought of using arugula! Adds a nice peppery undertone to the sauce. In full disclosure, I subbed in pecans for the walnuts as my wife is sensitive to walnuts. I don’t think it made too large of a difference to the original recipe and we both loved it!
I love this recipe and have substituted oregano for arugula from time to time. The strong taste of walnuts is important, unlike with a basil pesto, where pine nuts work well. I keep small containers of this in the freezer to bring out on those nights when time is of the essence!
Plenty of good freshly grated parmesan and freshly ground black pepper are a must.
Made this tonight and truly didn’t care for it at all. It was a bit too bland and the roasted walnuts didn’t do much for me. I am from Europe and can say with certainty there are many many pesto style recipes with body and depth, this unfortunately is not one of those.
Would this be ok to make a day ahead and reheat, or is that not recommended?
I think it’s probably best if eaten right after it’s prepared but that you could get away with making ahead and reheating it. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
What are the calories for serving? Ty
Hi Mary, It would be 526 calories (for 6 servings). I just added all of the nutritional information to the recipe. Hope that helps!
This recipe was delicious and easy! Leftovers were great too. A great use of arugula.
Do you measure the arugula using a “packed” cup? I know that you have used that terminology in other recipes (“gently packed basil” in your pesto recipe), but here it is just “3 cups”. Do you know approx. how many ounces or grams of arugula it would be? Thanks!
Hi Julie, I’d estimate it’s between 2-1/2 to 3 ounces. Hope that helps!
Easyyyy and delicious!! Thank you!
Can I leave out the nuts? Or substitute something else? I am allergic. Thanks!
Hi Hannah, I wouldn’t leave the nuts out as they play an important part in the pesto. I haven’t tried this with something like pepitas or sunflower seeds so I can’t say for sure how it will turn out, but you could experiment with that. I see online that there are some nut-free pesto recipes, so you may want to give one of those a try.
Is it ok if they are salted and roasted already? That’s all I have!
Sure, but I would skip the roasting step and cut back on the added salt a bit. Hope you enjoy!
We made this tonight and loved it. Had some cooked chicken so added that as well. Great meal and easy to prepare.
Wonder if there might be a substitute for the heavy cream?
Hi Kathryn, I think half & half would work here.
I made this today! It was super easy and quick to prepare and so yummy! I mixed in some spinach because I didn’t have enough arugula. Great recipe! Will make again.
Can the Pesto be frozen?
Sure, Kris. I’d cover it with a thin film of olive oil. 🙂
Would baby spinach or fresh basil work in this recipe? It looks delicious!
Yep!
Wondering if I can replace the arugula with a baby spring mix.
Hi Jaimie, I think you could use a blend of baby arugula and baby kale, spinach, or basil (or any combination).