1/4 cup pine nuts
1 lb. uncooked linguine or fettuccine
24 whole fresh basil leaves
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1/3 cup EVOO
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes cut into thin julienne strips
8-oz. baby arugula leaves
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese

Put the pine nuts in a small dry skillet.  Place skillet over low heat and cook the pine nuts, stirring frequently, until they darken slightly in color 3 minutes.  Immediately transfer the pine nuts to a small dish and set aside to cool.  Bring a large pot of salted water to a full rolling boil.  Add the linguine and cook it until al dente, tender but still chewy, as per pkg. directions.

While pasta is cooking, make the pesto.  In a blender combine the basil, garlic, olive oil, pine nuts and salt.  Blend on high speed until smoothly pureed, stopping several times as necessary to scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula.  As soon as the pasta is done cooking, drain it, reserving 1 cup of it's cooking water.  Transfer the drained pasta to a mixing bowl.  Add pesto, sun-dried tomatoes, arugula leaves and balsamic vinegar.

Toss well, adding just enough of the reserved water while you toss to help the pesto coat the pasta throughly and evenly.

With pasta serving spoons, transfer the linguine to individual large, shallow serving bowls, making sure that each serving gets it's fair share of the sun-dried tomatoes and arugula leaves.

Serve immediately topping with freshly grated Parmesan cheese to taste.

Serves 6