Father's Day Tribute -  Sunny pays tribute to her stepfather on Father's Day by preparing a chorizo burrito with a tequila buzz.

One Sunday, back in 1909, young Louise Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington sat in church attentively listening to a Mother's Day sermon when an idea occurred to her.  "Since we have Mother's Day, why not celebrate a Father's Day?" Louise's father, Civil War veteran William Smart, had raised his daughter and her five brothers after the premature death of his wife. Louise thought it natural to pay tribute to him, whom she considered a loving and devoted man.

The first Father's Day, sanctioned by the Spokane Minister's Alliance and the Spokane YMCA, was celebrated on William Smart's birthday on June 19, 1910. When word spread about Spokane's "Father's Day," pressure was placed on President Woodrow Wilson to declare a national Father's Day. Six years later he signed the necessary papers.  Father's Day would officially be celebrated the third Sunday each June. Family members observed the occasion by wearing a red rose for a living father, or a white one for a deceased father.

Unfortunately, the wearing of the rose seems to have gone by the wayside in the face of dominant commercial interests (about one billion dollars spent annually on gifts and cards).
 
So, I don't recall ever having worn a red rose to honor my father, now deceased two decades. But I do remember presenting him with a homemade card: "HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, DAD!," I had scrawled in colorful broad letters using red and orange crayons.  Each year, on that day, and after church, the family would share his favorite meal, a simple but tasty offering of mom's well-seasoned, baked chicken breasts, creamy mashed potatoes and a medley of peas and carrots. And for dessert, French vanilla ice cream draped with chocolate sauce and garnished with two homemade potato chip cookies. Occasionally, dad would opt for a steak entree, which he'd grill himself, donned in a white bib apron and an authentic chef's cap.

I can't turn the clock back but on this Father's Day, which falls on the 21st, I'll wear two roses, not just a white rose but also a red one to honor my stepfather, WWII marine veteran William Kimmel. Although he joined the family years after I became an adult, he quickly became my friend and confidante.
 
And, like me, he worships Mexican fare, a specialty neither one of us appreciated until moving from the Midwest to the Southwest.   His favorite is the burrito, and the bigger the better.  Whenever he travels from his Arizona home to my place - "Arizona doesn't make 'em like New Mexico" -  the family heads to the nearest Mexican joint so Bill can scarf down a full-to-bursting chorizo, egg and chile burrito. 

If you're a newcomer, chorizo is ground pork sausage made racy with chili powder (a powdered spice mix of dried chiles, garlic, oregano, cumin, coriander and cloves.). Chorizo is popular in both Mexican and Spanish cookery.  Mexican chefs prefer fresh pork while the Spanish chefs elect the smoked meat.  American waist watchers opt for turkey and lean pork. (Lyn Nusom, the author of The Sizzling Southwestern Cookbook [Lowell House, 1995], shares a flavorsome, lo-cal version in his book.) Chorizo isn't just for burritos, however. It enlivens a variety of dishes including enchiladas, stews, casseroles and soups.  And I add chorizo to spaghetti sauce, which offers this chilehead the obligatory kick.

So, on this Father's Day, festooned in two roses, I'll create a chubby burrito loaded with zippy chile, scrambled egg crumbles, and homemade Mexican Chorizo with a Tequila Buzz and think of Bill with my first savory bite.  Alas, we can't be together on this special day, only in spirit. You're the best, Bill.  HAPPY FATHER'S DAY! 
               
HOMEMADE MEXICAN CHORIZO WITH A TEQUILA BUZZ

2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 T vinegar
1 1/2 T chili powder
1 tsp. salt
1 T tequila
1 pound ground pork sausage, regular or hot
Salt to taste

In an iron skillet mix all ingredients well.  Fry until golden brown, stirring constantly with a fork, breaking the pork morsels into crumbles. 

Father's Day Burritos (served 4 to 6)

Chorizo (recipe above)
8 eggs
6 chiles, roasted, peeled and chopped (as hot as you like)
Sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
Salsa

When chorizo is finished cooking, top mixture in skillet with eggs and chile.  Stir constantly over medium-high heat until eggs are cooked. Place about 1 cup or more of chorizo along the center of a flour tortilla.  Fold ends in and roll into a burrito.  Scatter shredded cheese on top and place burrito in microwave.  Heat until cheese is melted.  Top with a favorite salsa.