Menlo Park Girl, 12, Wins First Lady Lunch Award

Peninsula child will be dining at the White House in a couple weeks

A total of 54 health-conscious children - including a 12-year-old from Menlo Park - have won a prestigious award from the First Lady of Lunch herself as part of her "Let's Move!" initiative.

Rose Scott, 12, will be heading to Washington, D.C. on July 9 for a state dinner at the White House, hosted by Michelle Obama, for her award-winning “Pork and Tofu Lettuce Cups” recipe. There were more than 1,300 entries in the national contest this year. She is the only winner from California.

"We're super excited," Rose's mom, Jean Lum Hoy, a landscape designer, told NBC Bay Area on Thursday.

Rose, a student at The Girls' Middle School in Palo Alto, started cooking a few years ago, her mom said, and is responsible for cooking one dinner a week. The family plays "chef," where Rose and her brother, Galen, 10, are the head cooks, directing their parents, including father John Scott,  what to do.

Some of Rose's other specialties are black bean chili, pancakes and a "taco mountain." When she's not cooking, she's either running for the cross country team or doing synchronized swimming with the Santa Clara Aquamaids.

Rose was inspired to create the pork and tofu recipe, her mom said, because Galen is allergic to dairy, eggs and gluten, and she wanted to come up with a healthy dinner her brother could eat.

MORE: Rose Scott's Pork and Tofu Lettuce Cups

Coming up with original, nutritious meals is what the whole contest is about.

“The kid chefs who come from around the country never cease to impress and inspire me with their creativity and ingenuity.  I’m counting down the days until the winners join me at the White House to celebrate these healthy and delicious meals that kids everywhere will love,” Michelle Obama said in a statement on Thursday.

Menlo Park City Councilwoman Catherine Carlton, who does not know Rose personally, was excited to hear that a child in her city won the award. "That's so cool. I'm so proud," said Carlton, who volunteers with a Junior League Kids in the Kitchen program herself.

This is the second year of the Healthy Lunchtime Challenge & Kids "State Dinner," originated by Epicurious, where children ages 8 to 12 are urged to create a lunchtime recipe that is healthy, affordable, original and delicious. Michelle Obama started the program to combat the epidemic of childhood obesity.

A free downloadable and printable e-cookbook of the winning recipes, including nutritional analyses and photos, will be available in July at the contest site, epicurious.com, letsmove.gov, USDA.gov, and Ed.gov.

For the full list of winners:

Rowan Bean, 9, (Seward, AK) – “Alaskan Ceviche with Mango”
Kindall Sewell-Murphy, 10, (Selma, AL) – “Kale Broccoli Chicken and Apple Salad”
Emma-Kate Schaefer, 8, (Fayetteville, AR) – “Confetti Spring Rolls - Orange-Cilantro Sauce”
Alexandra Nickle, 10, (Phoenix, AZ) – “Banana's Black Bean Burritos”
Rose Scott, 12, (Menlo Park, CA) – “Pork and Tofu Lettuce Cups”
Nicholas Hornbostel, 8, (Edwards, CO) – “Sushi Salad”
John Breitfelder, 9, (New Canaan, CT) – “Quinoa "Risotto" with Shrimp and Kale”
Braeden Mannering, 9, (Bear, DE) – “Tortilla Bowl Deluxe”
Nicole Medina, 10, (Miami, FL) – “Summer Salmon”
Regan Matthews, 12, (Atlanta, GA) – “Sweet Potato Turkey Sliders”
Eleanor Cowell, 8, (Honolulu, HI) – “Curried Chicken Salad & Taste of the Tropics”
Corrine VanderGaast, 9, (Tipton, IA) – “Stone Curry with Brown Rice”
Adam Wirth, 8, (Boise, ID) – “Veggie Barley Salad with Orange Honey Vinaigrette”
Taddy Pettit, 10, (Oakwood, IL) – “Black Bean Wrap with Jicama - Grilled Corn Salsa”
Lydia Graham, 9, (Carmel, IN) – “Sneaky Chili Surprise”
Olivia Neely, 10, (Lenexa, KS) – “Fun Mini Pizzas with Veggies & Cauliflower Crust”
Regan Strehl, 11, (Lexington, KY) – “Raisin Bran Muffins”
Brynna Robert, 12, (Metairie, LA) – “Sweet and Spicy Stir Fry”
Shefali Singh, 12, (Falmouth, MA) – “Shefali's Scrumptious Spring Rolls”
Emma Scielzo. 10, (Chevy Chase, MD) – “Chicken Masala Wrap”
Noah Koch, 9, (Waterville, ME) – “Vegan Powerhouse Pesto Pasta”
Jacob Hirsch, 8, (West Bloomfield, MI) – “Picky Eater Pita Pizza Pockets”
Kaitlyn Kirchner, 9, (Madelia, MN) – “Garden Stir-Fry”
Henry Oates, 8, (Adrian, MO) – “Confetti Peanut Ginger Party Pasta”
Reed Lindsey, 10, (Booneville, MS) – “Pan Seared Mississippi Catfish on a Bed of River Rice”
Joshua Garrigues, 8, (Bozeman, MT) – “Healthy Vegetable Fried Quinoa”
Vijay Dey, 12, (Chapel Hill, NC) – “Spring Rolls”
Charli McQuillan, 8, (Oxbow, ND) – “Asian Fajitas”
Bence Brown, 9, (Omaha, NE) – “Terrific Tuna Casserole”
Olivia Beauchesne, 12, (Nottingham, NH) – “Liv's Curry Chicken Salad Sandwich”
Goldie Siegel, 8, (Clifton, NJ) – “Hawaiian Turkey Sliders with Mango-Pineapple Salsa”
Louis Teich, 10, (Las Cruces, NM) – “Spinach Frittata”
Isabella Gross, 11, (Henderson, NV) – “Chex Chicken and Bellaberry Smoothie”
Peter Murphy, 8, (Manhasset, NY) – “Super Rescue Soup”
Anisha Patel, 11, (Blacklick, OH) – “Kickin, Colorful, Bell Peppers stuffed with Quinoa”
Ogden Johnson, 10, (Tulsa, OK) – “Taco De Camaron”
Audrey Russell, 10, (Portland, OR) – “Salmon Fried Rice”
Ganesh Selvakumar, 9, (Broomall, PA) – “Lentil Spinach Soup and Mint Chutney”
Samantha Mastrati, 12, (Cranston, RI) – “Italian Garden Salsa with Crunchy Chicken Tenders”
Corbin Jackson, 9, (Mount Pleasant, SC) – “Bring it On, Brussels Sprout Wrap!”
Owen Kerkvliet, 9, (Huron, SD) – “Hidden Veggie Lasagna”
Makenna Hurd, 9, (Mascot, TN) – “Makenna's Bodacious Banana Muffins”
Devanshi Udeshi, 12, (Sugar Land, TX) – “Slam Dunk Veggie Burger”
Cecily Asplund, 10, (Provo, UT) – “Lucky Lettuce Cups”
Campbell Kielb, 8, (Sterling, VA) – “Orange Chicken Lettuce Wraps”
Colin Hurliman, 9, (Burlington, VT) – “Champ's Maple BBQ Turkey Burgers”
Amber Kelley, 10, (Woodinville, WA) – “Nummy No-Noodle Lasagna”
Liam Kivirist, 11, (Browntown, WI) – “Wisconsin Solar Oven-Simmered Chili”
Jessica Wolfe, 9, (Shepherdstown, WV) – “Spicy Tofu Lettuce Cups”
Breeze Petty, 11, (Thermopolis, WY) – “Scrumptious Chili with Zucchini Cornbread”
Ingrid Lamberg, 9, (Washington, DC) – “Inga Binga's Salmon Salad”
Genzo Gonzales, 11, (Saipan, MP) – “Kangkong Pomegranate Salad”
Aliana Piñero, 9, (San Juan, PR) – “Yummy Eggplant Lasagna Rolls”
Sakari Clendinen, 8, (St. Thomas, VI) – “Zucchini Pancakes & Passion Fruit Banana Smoothie”

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