'Iron Chef' heads to White House

WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 (UPI) -- The TV cooking show "Iron Chef America" will do an episode at the White House, the Food Network said Tuesday.

The Los Angeles Times reported the episode's challenge will be for teams of competing chefs to make a meal using produce grown in first lady Michelle Obama's White House garden.

Obama will greet celebrity chefs Mario Batali, Bobby Flay and Emeril Lagasse, who will be joined by White House Executive Chef Cristeta Comerford for a Super Chef Battle, the newspaper said. Flay and Comerford will be paired against Batali and Lagasse, preparing five dishes showcasing White House garden ingredients for what the network is billing as "the ultimate American meal."

The episode will air Sunday, Jan. 3.

Judging their efforts will be Nigella Lawson, a chef and best-selling cookbook author; Natalie Coughlin, an Olympic gold medalist swimmer; and Jane Seymour, actress, author and designer.

The White House garden also was featured in Tuesday night's episode of "The Biggest Loser," the Times noted.