What’s Inside This Week?
June 4, 2026
Essentials Box
- Arugula, 8oz, $5.00
- Cilantro, 3oz, $3.00
- Parsnips, 1 bu, $4.00
- Green Beans, 1lb, $5.00
- Avocados, 2lbs, $7.00
Original Box
- Essentials Box, plus:
- Broccoli, head, $4.00
- Beets, 1 bu, $3.00
- Strawberry, clam, $7.00
Hearty Box
- Original Box, plus:
- Romanesco, head, $5.00
- Chard, bu, $5.00
- Cabbage, head, $4.00
- Yellow Crookneck, 2lbs, $6.00
We have eggs! Fresh farm eggs available as an add-on to your CSA subscription. Email us at customerservice@dare2dreamfarms.com to add them to your next delivery.
Weekly pickup at Vandenberg Space Force Base
Vandenberg Space Force Base Visitors Center parking lot — every Thursday at 1:00pm. Know someone on base? Spread the word!
If Thursday timing doesn’t work, we may be able to arrange a pickup at your home on base — email customerservice@dare2dreamfarms.com and we’ll work something out.
Field Notes
This week the farm felt a little more complete. The Peczeks arrived Wednesday evening — Myron, Colleen, and little Lila — and watching the kids all find each other again was a beautiful moment that reaffirmed why community matters as much as anything else we grow here. There was flower picking, goat visits, dancing, and farm chores done together before anyone even asked. That’s the kind of joyful living that happens when the right people are in the right place.
Myron steps back into the role of Garden Manager this week, and we couldn’t be happier to have his steady hands and exacting eyes on the rows. We’ll be honest — Myron loves his rows straight and pristine, and the garden has had its own ideas while he was away. But we have to give real credit to Preston and his crew, who took on an enormous amount of responsibility in managing the garden through some of the busiest weeks of the season. They learned fast and they showed up, and they did well!
The Peczeks are back. Myron returns as Garden Manager and we are so glad to have this family home.
Waylon welcoming Lila back the best way he knew how.
Their welcome brought the whole team together — kids included. Wyatt and Zoe helped unload strawberries alongside Lila, and Wade helped bring in a delivery of green beans from our friends at Sunrise Organic Farms. The farm is more than a place of work. It’s loud with laughter and squeals and a little chaotic and completely wonderful.
There’s a lot of work ahead to get the garden rows back to Myron’s standard, but it’s good work that will make the farm feel a little like paradise, with a clear vision and the right person leading it. The summer stretch is here, and we’re ready for it.
Zoe and Lila working together to unload strawberries. Like they never missed a beat.
Wyatt on strawberry duty. Every hand counts on box day.
Wade helping bring in the green beans from Sunrise Organic Farms. Local farms supporting local farms.
Storage Tips
Greens: arugula, chard → wrap in a towel, bag in the fridge; use within 5–7 days.
Legumes: green beans → fridge crisper, unwashed, loosely bagged; best within 4–5 days.
Roots: parsnips, beets → fridge crisper, bagged; remove beet greens if attached and store separately.
Brassicas: broccoli, romanesco, cabbage → fridge crisper, loosely bagged; broccoli and romanesco best within 3–5 days.
Squash: yellow crookneck → fridge crisper, unwashed, loosely bagged; best within 4–5 days.
Herbs: cilantro → stems in a jar of water in the fridge, loosely covered; keeps up to a week.
Fruit: strawberries → don’t wash until ready to eat; fridge, use within 2–3 days. Avocados → counter to ripen, then fridge.
Summer Minestrone with Green Beans & Chard
Ingredients
- 1lb green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 bunch chard, stems and leaves separated, chopped
- 2 parsnips, peeled and diced
- 1 can (15oz) cannellini or white beans, drained
- 1 can (14oz) diced tomatoes
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
- 1 cup small pasta (ditalini or elbows)
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro or parsley, chopped
- Salt, pepper, parmesan rind (optional)
- Parmesan to serve
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium. Add onion and chard stems and cook 5 minutes until softened. Add garlic and cook 1 more minute.
- Add parsnips, diced tomatoes, broth, and parmesan rind if using. Bring to a simmer and cook 10 minutes.
- Add green beans and pasta. Cook 8–10 minutes until pasta is al dente and green beans are just tender.
- Stir in white beans and chard leaves. Cook 2–3 more minutes until chard is wilted and beans are warmed through.
- Season well with salt and pepper. Stir in cilantro or parsley. Ladle into bowls and finish with grated Parmesan and a drizzle of good olive oil.
Minestrone: the farm box soup that changes every week
Minestrone is less a fixed recipe than a method — and that’s exactly what makes it one of the most useful things you can make with a CSA farm box. The base is always the same: aromatics (onion, garlic), broth, tomatoes, beans, and pasta. Everything else rotates with whatever needs using. This week it’s green beans, chard, and parsnips. Next week it might be zucchini, kale, and romanesco. The soup absorbs it all and makes it feel intentional every time.
Green beans are one of the best vegetables for soup because they hold their texture without going mushy, even after a few minutes of cooking. Add them later in the process — after the broth has had time to develop flavor — so they stay bright and snappy rather than soft. The same rule applies to any quick-cooking green: chard, spinach, or arugula all go in at the very end, just long enough to wilt.
Parsnips deserve more attention than they get. They look like pale carrots and behave similarly in a pot, but their flavor is sweeter and more complex — almost nutty, with a hint of anise. They break down slightly as they cook, which adds body to the broth without any thickening agent. If parsnips are new to you, this soup is the easiest possible introduction.
Minestrone is also a soup that truly gets better the next day as the pasta absorbs the broth and the flavors deepen. Make a full pot on Sunday and lunch is handled for half the week.
