We can hardly believe it’s almost here – the 2014 Kids’ State Dinner is this Friday, July 18, and we are officially counting down the days! Be sure to stay tuned each day for updates about the event, and tune in here to catch all the action on Friday.

The Kids' State Dinner winners will be coming to the White House from all fifty states, three territories, and the District of Columbia to join the First Lady for lunch featuring a selection of the winning recipes along with a visit to the White House Kitchen Garden.

Go behind the scenes and see how this year’s winning recipes were selected:

The lucky judges tasted 112 delicious dishes cooked up by DC Central Kitchen (originally created by these young budding chefs themselves) to help make the selections. The winning recipes were picked based on USDA’s MyPlate recommendations and based on the challenge criteria of being healthy, original, tasty, and affordable. We can’t wait to showcase the talented young chefs and their winning dishes on Friday and hope you’ll tune in to join the fun!