I was kind of dreading Father’s Day this year. All of the first holidays and events without him are hard. But the impending punch in the gut of Father’s Day—all of the gift guides in my inbox, the grilling recipes for dad online, the Father’s Day golf/BBQ/fishing/woodworking/drinking themed everything everywhere—it had me in a major funk these last few weeks. Luckily we celebrated in the most amazing way possible, which really helped me (and my sister and mom) get through the day. Rather than having a somber memorial last summer, which he would have hated, we waited until last weekend, and had a big blow-out celebration of life. He loved being a dad, and he loved summer solstice, so there was no better time to raise a glass and toast an awesome man, who lived life to the fullest.
My dad loved good food, good drinks, laughter, jokes, friends, and family. He was a good-timin’ kinda guy, and we sent him on his way in true JFK (my dad, not the pres) fashion. Friends and family (about 70 people!) came from all over the place: southern, northern, and central California, Oregon, North Carolina, Texas, Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, and all over Washington. We ate an insane amount of smoked meat, toasted terrible shots of slivovitz, told tons of stories, and looked through years and years of hilarious and fantastic photos. Evan and our friend Robb arranged an epic bean bag/ corn hole tournament: three courses, 19 teams, 39 total games. Amanda and I were The Zombies (which was my dad’s old horse-shoe team name), and we came in second (we lost to the, ahem, Bunghole Bros). 
That night we had the most beautiful pastel painted sunset, my dad’s favorite kind… his little gift to us. I miss him like crazy, but man, I feel so lucky that I got to have 29 years with him. So much thanks to my ma for working her little tail nearly clean off, to all her helpers, and to all our friends and family who came to celebrate. It was so cool to be surrounded by so many people that loved him. And it made this Father’s Day way less sucky.
So anyway, long story short: I just haven’t really been in the kitchen lately. Totally unrelated to everything above, I did manage to make quick grilled flatbread pizza, and figured you should probably know about it. Since it’s officially summer, we’re putting a bunch of summery goodness on a flatbread, and then grilling it up. Fresh corn and cherries, plus BBQ sauce, grilled chicken, and smoked mozzarella. Hello summa!BBQ Chicken Flatbread Pizzas
3 chicken tenders (or 1 large chicken breast, cut in 3 thin strips)
Olive oil, salt, and pepper
2 flatbreads or large naan (like these)
3/4 cup BBQ sauce
1-1.5 cups grated smoked mozzerella
8-10 fresh cherries, pitted and halved (and sliced again if they’re big)
1 ear of corn, kernels cut from cob
2 green onions, sliced
Heat grill. Brush chicken with olive oil, and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Grill until cooked through, and cut into thin slices.
Spread BBQ sauce on one side of each flatbread, and top with cheese, cherries, corn, green onions, and chicken. Grill until cheese is melted.
To make without a grill, prepare chicken as you like, then heat oven to 400 degrees F. Place flatbreads on a baking sheet, and cook for about 10-15 minutes, until cheese is totally melted.
