UPDATE:
(Source: WhiteHouse.gov)
The first-ever Kids’ “State Dinner” at the White House, welcoming 54 budding chefs to a formal luncheon in the East Room was a great success. The guests, all between the ages of 8 and 12, represented all U.S. states, three territories and the District of Columbia.
Each of the guests, along with their parents, had submitted a healthy recipe as part of the Healthy Lunchtime Challenge.
More than 1,200 kids submitted recipes for this challenge and a panel of judges from the organizations that teamed up with Mrs. Obama on this initiative — Epicurious, the Department of Education and the Department of Agriculture—selected the final round of recipes and picked their favorites from each state.
The junior chefs and their parents enjoyed several of the judges’ selections at lunch, including a Quinoa, Black Bean, and Corn Salad created by 11-year-old Haile Thomas of Arizona, Yummy Cabbage Sloppy Joes, created by 12-year-old Rori Coyne of Kansas. There was even dessert: a Strawberryana Smoothie, created by 11-year-old Stefani Shimomura-Sakamoto who came all the way from Hawaii.
President Obama stopped by to surprise the guests, and told all the young people how proud he was of their hard work.Please see a video below.
For additional videos and photos of this great affair, please click here
Original Post:
I realize that one or two will find some reason to criticize this gesture, but I think it’s a cool idea, so here it is from the First Lady.
Those with young kids may want to watch it here
“Hello —
Tomorrow is going to be a special day at the White House, and I wanted to make sure you got a chance to be a part of it.
At lunchtime, 54 kids from all over the United States will join me in the East Room for the first-ever Kids’ State Dinner.
Each of these young people worked with their parents to create an original lunch recipe. We asked them to design a dish that was healthy, affordable, and tasty — and which met the nutritional guidelines set up by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A panel of judges from the groups who partnered with us on this project — the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Education, and Epicurious — chose these 54 recipes as their favorites.
So now, the kid chefs and their parents are on their way to the White House, and tomorrow we’ll all enjoy a meal together and take in a musical performance from Nickelodeon’s Big Time Rush. You can watch the whole thing as it happens on our website — will you join us tomorrow?
• WHAT: The Kids’ State Dinner at the White House
• WHEN: August 20 at 10 a.m. EDT
• WHERE: http://www.letsmove.gov/kids-state-dinner
As a mom, I know that parents are always looking for new ideas to make sure our kids are eating right and staying healthy. That’s part of why we launched the Let’s Move! initiative.
And it’s why we’re working with the Department of Education and Epicurious to share a free printable and downloadable cookbook with the winning recipes that these young people created with their parents.
You can learn more about our work to solve the problem of childhood obesity so that all our kids can grow up healthy at LetsMove.gov.
And tomorrow, I hope you will join in the fun of the Kids’ State Dinner.
Thanks!
First Lady Michelle Obama
P.S. — To get a preview of some of the great recipes, go here.”
The author is a retired U.S. Air Force officer and a writer.