Last Wednesday evening, President Obama and the First Lady hosted French President François Hollande for a state dinner that celebrated the best of American cuisine. Ahead of the event, White House Chef Cris Comerford and Pastry Chef Bill Yosses took over the White House Instagram to give a look behind the scenes and inside the kitchen.

As local as you can get! We're using honey from the White House beehive in a vinaigrette to dress a Winter Garden Salad with mixed radishes and baby carrots. Each season the color of the honey changes. Here you can see the difference between 2012 and 2013. —Cris

We're using a paint sprayer (previously unused of course) to give a micro-thin layer of chocolate over soft and creamy ganache cake. The bittersweet chocolate comes from Hawaii, and it will be served à la mode with vanilla ice-cream from Pennsylvania. —Bill

Here's a first look at the Winter Garden Salad that we're serving at tomorrow's State Dinner. The salad features herbs from the White House Kitchen Garden, and the dressing uses honey from the beehive on the South Lawn. —Cris

Sugar roses and fleur-de-lis, the official flowers of the United States and France. We made 38 of each—that's more than 1,800 petals! —Bill