Grilled Sausage with Arugula Pesto

I've said it before, but those peeps over at The Kitchn always seem to know what I am in the mood for. Friday was an especially slow day at work (I blame Comic Con) so I spent the entire day reading food blogs and looking for interesting new recipes. I love pesto, but I have never tried making it myself because I didn't have a food processor...until now. I was so glad this was an arugula pesto because I already had all of the ingredients at home and I am trying to be kinder to my wallet and make fewer trips to the grocery store. (Why do I have to live on a street with TWO grocery stores about 50 steps aways?!?!) Anyway, this was really simple and came together quickly. I made the pesto a couple of days early and plan on using the leftovers with chicken or fish sometime this week. I decided to use chicken sausage instead of pork, because that is just what I prefer. I found a really great one at the farmer's market. One note, the recipe calls for 1 1/2 tsp of salt, but I thought it was a little too salty. You may want to try using 1 tsp or less if you decide to make this yourself.

Grilled Sausage with Arugula Pesto
(from Martha Stewart Living)

4 oz organic baby arugula
4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed (I used 5 cause I loves me some garlic!)
1 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 tsp kosher flake salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/2 c organic extra-virgin olive oil
4 Italian sausages (can use both hot and/or sweet)

Make the pesto: Place the arugula and garlic in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped, scraping down the sides if necessary. Add cheese, salt, pepper, and olive oil and puree until smooth and well combined.

Heat grill to medium-high heat. Prick sausages with a fork to allow any excess fat to drip. Grill until cooked through. Serve pesto over the grilled sausages.

I served this with a simple spinach salad with a lemon vinaigrette, but if you want to do the full menu, check out the suggested Minestrone Salad.