Michelle Obama Outlines Details Of First State Dinner

November 24, 2009 6:58 p.m. EST

Washington, DC (AHN) - Details of the first White House State Dinner of the Obama presidency were revealed today.

Addressing journalists in the White House, Michelle Obama told reporters that the dinner is very important for her, saying, "I have been on the other side of these visits and dinners -- as a guest in many countries," adding, "And this evening, tonight the President and I are going to be hosting our first state dinner -- and we're hosting for the Prime Minister and his wife, Mrs. Kaur."

Exposing the action behind the curtains, the FIrst Lady said: "The President and I are going to host this really neat dinner outside in the tent. But we describe it, it's sort of like a swan, where we're kind of calm and serene above water -- but we're paddling like mad, going crazy underneath, trying to look smooth."

The dinner is a departure from the traditional venue, the elegant, high-ceilinged State Dining Room, the Obamas are gathering with a few hundred VIPs in a huge, heated tent on the South Lawn.

Details on the event were trickling out this afternoon. The 330 guests will gather at tables for 10 covered with apple green tablecloths and festooned with flowers.

The dinner menu, which the White House released on its Web site this afternoon, will include potato and eggplant salad, red lentil soup, roasted potato dumplings, green curry prawns, coconut aged basmati and pumpkin pie tart.

On the guest list for the black-tie gala, the FIrst Lady disclosed names of Oscar-winners Jennifer Hudson and A.R. Rahman as heading the entertainment list. She also mentioned the performers: Kurt Elling, a Grammy-winning jazz singer and composer, and the National Symphony Orchestra, with Marvin Hamlisch conducting.

Here is the complete menu:

Potato and Eggplant Salad White House Arugula with Onion Seed Vinaigrette 2008 Sauvignon Blanc, Modus Operandi, Napa Valley, California

Red Lentil Soup with Fresh Cheese 2006 Riesling, Brooks "Ara", Wilamette Valley, Oregon

Roasted Potato Dumplings with Tomato Chutney Chick Peas and Okra or Green Curry Prawns with caramelized salsify with smoked Collard Greens and coconut aged basmati 2007 Granache Beckman Vineyards, Santa Ynez, California

Pumpkin pie tart Pear Tatin Whipped Cream and Caramel sauce Sparkling Chardonnay, Thibaut Janisson Brut, Monticello, Virginia

Petits fours and Coffee Cashew Brittle Pecan Pralines Passion fruit and vanilla Gelees Chocolate dipped fruit