First Lady Michelle Obama Featured On EverydayHealth.com: "Eat Like The White House"

An "exclusive" interview with First Lady Michelle Obama was posted today on EverydayHealth.com as the website unveiled its Fall editorial feature, "Eat Like the White House Eats." The website claims 28 million visitors monthly, and Mrs. Obama begins her interview on healthy eating and the importance of the Let's Move! campaign by professing her love for French fries. The above photo compilation of Mrs. Obama and her favorite food is posted with the interview.

The web feature includes five recipes that are credited to the White House chefs, but three of these were NOT actually created by the white-jacketed folks working at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. There's also a section on presidential snacks; President Obama's favorite snack, according to the website, is chocolate Smoked Salt Caramels.

As her interview begins, Mrs. Obama is asked her favorite food.

"This is an easy one — it’s French fries. I love them. And I’m not afraid to talk about it because it’s important that we realize that healthy eating doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing approach. Choosing a healthy diet isn’t about deprivation, it’s about balance. It’s about moderation. Like I tell my kids, as long as you eat fruits and vegetables at every meal, you’ll be okay if you have pizza or ice cream every once in a while. The problem is when the treats become the habits."

Mrs. Obama also offers some parental advice for getting children to try healthier foods.

"Give them some choice in the matter. Find nutritious recipes they like and build up from there. Garden with them. Take them grocery shopping. Get them involved in the kitchen."

The recipes...
As for the recipes: Three of the "Five Fresh Recipes From the White House Kitchen" that are posted online and credited to the White House chefs were actually created by the food editors at Better Homes and Gardens magazine to accompany Mrs. Obama's July cover story about the Kitchen Garden. These include the recipes for Sweet Potato Fries with Baby Tomato Ketchup, smashed Apple Jam, and Fruit Pockets. They're perfectly good and easy recipes, but the White House chefs did not create them.

A fourth recipe that's posted, for Turkey and Spinach Lasagna, was previously released by the White House, created by Executive Chef Cris Comerford for an appearance on The Martha Stewart Show. But the recipe is credited on EverydayHealth.com as a creation of Assistant Chef Sam Kass. There seems to be one new White House recipe, for "I Made It Myself" Pizza, which is a veggie-loaded pie. But the White House, as of this writing, has not yet confirmed if a White House chef actually created the recipe.

Above: A screengrab of the online feature, which also includes ten recipes "inspired" by the First Lady's White House Kitchen Garden, and a healthy eating quiz.

The press release for the feature notes that "In addition to the French fries indulgence admission, Michelle Obama also notes in the exclusive interview that healthy eating does not have to be an all or nothing approach and she encourages Everyday Health readers to remember that treats should not become the habit. She offers ideas on how to involve children in the process and provides insights into a typical Obama family dinner – a time she says helps her family be a bit healthier, with their eating and as a family."

*Images from EverydayHealth.com