President Obama Announces His Favorite Food
At the second annual Kids’ State Dinner – a healthy food event that has been spearheaded by First Lady Michelle Obama – at the White House on July 9, President Obama made a very important announcement to the guests in attendance: his favorite food. The 54 kids who were there for the event were surprised to hear that broccoli was the president’s favorite ingredient – which might shock some students in culinary school as well.
This unscheduled visit to the East Room in the White House sent social media into a frenzy, and soon, the term “broccoli” was trending on Twitter, according to Yahoo. Ironically enough, Politico pointed out that broccoli is the very same veggie that President George H.W. Bush didn’t care for during his term, so this isn’t the first time that cuisine, broccoli and politics have become intertwined.
The president defends healthy food
Obama went on to say in his remarks that food can be healthy as well as fun. Politico pointed out that the president also has a craving for some rather unhealthier staples in American cuisine, such as pork chops, chili, French fries and nachos. However, it seems that like many students in online culinary courses, the president’s fondness for veggies has evolved – and it’s all about the preparation.
“[In] my family, when they cooked vegetables, they were all boiled,” Obama said, according to Reuters.
In fact, boiling vegetables too much is a common way to overcook and make them lose their flavor, which might cause many people to dislike them. However, there are many fantastic ways to prepare the president’s favorite food, including grilled, broiled or sautéed.
Let’s Move campaign
The Kids’ State Dinner is part of the first lady’s “Let’s Move” campaign, which aims to bring down the rate of childhood obesity in the United States. Some of the winning dishes served at the event were kid-friendly healthy items like “sweet potato turkey sliders” and “picky eater pita pizza pockets.”
The Kids’ State Dinner features dishes that kids cook themselves and then submit to the White House. Entries came in from all over the country, and some were pretty impressive. All of the winners were chosen based on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate – the new standard for figuring out how to plan healthy meals.
The competition favored recipes that were affordable as well as healthy and delicious.