"The beauty of lasagna": Why the Italian staple is the ultimate comfort food in times of need

Lasagna is a unique dish that represents so much more than "just food" for many.

As I wrote back in 2022, "Lasagna is also a perfect 'one pot meal,' it's an easy dish to make and then wrap up with foil and give to a new neighbor or someone grieving and it doesn't "require" any side dishes (although a green salad, some crusty bread and some extra sauce and grated cheese on the side are certainly welcome)." 

Lasagna typifies a certain familiarity and reliability, comfortably ensconced in the Italian-American repertoire but also something that feels universal enough, straddling the line between pasta and casserole. It can be made in so many different ways, accommodating so many disparate flavor proclivities and food allergies, and is welcome at endless events. The "iconic, one-dish, standalone comfort meal" is one that both fulfills and satiates, emotionally and gustatorily, in a way that not many other foods do on the larger cultural scale. 

As Helena Fitzgerald wrote, "It is the kind of food that numbs pain and softens edges, turning a sharp and bitter world toward small, sense-based pleasures."

The non-profit organization Lasagna Love — in conjunction with Ragu — has tapped into lasagna's power to heal and comfort in an attempt to help curb the growing rates of food scarcity and food insecurity currently impacting the world. Salon Food recently spoke with Executive Director Andria Larson to find out just how it works, the far-reaching impacts of lasagna, the ways in which volunteers can help join and much more.

The following interview has been lightly edited for clarity and length.

Can you tell me a bit about Lasagna Love overall?  How did it originate? How does it help feed those who are food insecure? 

Lasagna Love is a community-driven initiative founded in 2020 by Rhiannon Menn during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. The idea was to address both food insecurity and the growing sense of isolation experienced by many during closures. The concept is beautifully simple yet impactful: volunteers cook and deliver homemade lasagnas to individuals and families in need within their local communities.

The inspiration behind Lasagna Love was to move from a state of helplessness and create a way for neighbors to connect and support one another. The lasagna, a comforting and nutritious meal, serves as a symbol of care and community. 

Lasagna Love operates through a network of volunteers who sign up to cook and deliver meals. These volunteers are matched with families or individuals who have requested help when facing challenging times. This model not only provides nutrition to those who are experiencing food insecurity, but also fosters a sense of community and connection. Volunteers often report that the experience of giving and receiving support creates a positive impact that extends far beyond just the meal itself.

By engaging local communities, Lasagna Love helps to address food insecurity while simultaneously building a network of support that connects people in meaningful ways. It’s a grassroots effort with a big heart and it continues to grow as more people see the value in combining acts of kindness with practical support.

How did Lasagna Love partner with RAGÚ? 

We deeply believe that preparing a home-cooked meal is the ultimate expression of love. It is literally from my home to yours. However, there is a common misconception that you have to spend all day in the kitchen to create a great homemade meal. This belief can sometimes be a barrier for people who want to sign up to volunteer but feel a bit intimidated by the cooking process or have little time. We found a secret ingredient to help give the opportunity for a BIG impact on little time availability — RAGÚ® Kettle Cooked Sauces.

As partners, the RAGÚ Team has been incredibly helpful with supporting us to help activate events where hundreds of lasagnas are being prepared to assist with the greater need we are seeing. We've been able to show our volunteers that making a homemade lasagna can be simple, quick and incredibly rewarding. This partnership has been saucy and satisfying, allowing more people to get involved and share love through a home-cooked meal.

RAGÚ Kettle Cooked sauces lend a premium taste without the fuss, allowing volunteers to focus on what really matters: spreading kindness and connecting with their community. It’s like having a secret ingredient that brings everything together perfectly!

We’re so grateful for this partnership and excited about the delicious possibilities it brings to our mission of spreading kindness one lasagna at a time.

Do you have a go-to favorite lasagna recipe? 

Yes! We love the RAGÚ Three Cheese Beef Lasagna recipe. It’s made with RAGÚ® Kettle Cooked Roasted Garlic Sauce and is an easy recipe packed with amazing flavor and a homemade taste that anyone who loves lasagna would appreciate. Many of our volunteers are also amazing cooks in their own right and love to also use their own recipes. We appreciate everyone’s collective efforts in making these lasagnas and it’s amazing that RAGÚ has provided top-tier ingredients for us to use to serve our families.

Is Lasagna Love able to supply lasagnas for all eaters, like those who are vegan, vegetarian or gluten-free? Or is it more of a one-size-fits-all deal?

Just like our communities, our abilities are just as diverse. Lasagna Love is committed to meeting many dietary needs and preferences. While the classic lasagna dish is often the meal choice, we understand that not everyone can enjoy a traditional lasagna due to dietary restrictions or personal preferences. That’s why we work with our volunteers to accommodate a range of dietary requirements.

When a request comes in, we make sure to communicate any specific dietary needs or restrictions the neighbor in need might have. Volunteers that are comfortable in the accommodations are then matched with requests that fit those needs, whether it's vegan, vegetarian, gluten free or other dietary considerations. We strive to ensure that everyone who receives a meal from Lasagna Love can enjoy it without concern. This flexibility is an important part of our mission because it aligns with our goal of providing both nourishment and comfort. By accommodating various dietary needs, we aim to make every recipient feel cared for and supported. It’s all about ensuring that the meals we provide are as inclusive and considerate as possible.

Lasagna can be such an equalizer, if you will — often a one-pot meal that can feed a large crowd and doesn't necessarily need to be served alongside anything else because it is indeed a meal on its own. Is this a reason why you decided to make lasagna the centerpiece of the organization?

You’ve hit the nail on the head! Lasagna really is a wonderful meal that brings people together and it’s no coincidence that it became the centerpiece of our organization. The beauty of lasagna lies in its simplicity and heartiness—it’s a comforting dish that can feed a family and, as you mentioned, is often a meal all on its own.

When we started Lasagna Love, we wanted a dish that was not only nourishing but also symbolic of care and connection. The simplicity of the four main ingredients (meat, cheese, noodles and sauce) clearly depicts our organization — take something simple and make it extraordinary. While the acts of kindness are simple, the meaning and long-lasting effects deeply resonate with not only those who receive a lasagna but those who bake and deliver them.

So, you could say that choosing lasagna as our central dish is a bit of a “cheesy” choice, but it’s one that captures the heart of what we do. 

Lasagna Love and RAGÚ have partnered to "help [local chefs and volunteers] prepare hundreds of lasagnas to be delivered to families in need." How exactly does that work? Can anyone join?

In celebration of National Lasagna Day, RAGÚ has generously partnered to support several volunteer-led events spanning both major metro areas and surrounding suburbs across Chicago, Nashville, Atlanta, Paramus, NJ and more. These events create hundreds of meals for those communities and are a fantastic way to mobilize local volunteers to come together and cook large quantities of lasagna, which are then delivered to families in need.

Here’s how it works:  RAGÚ provides funds and the key recipe ingredients — including RAGÚ Kettle Cooked Roasted Garlic Sauce — and we organize the events with the help of community volunteers. These gatherings are not just about cooking; they’re about fostering a spirit of community and collaboration. Volunteers come together to prepare and package the lasagnas then deliver them and everyone is welcome to join in! The typical volunteer journey is designed to be flexible and accommodating, making it easy for anyone to get involved based on their own schedule and capacity.

As a Lasagna Love volunteer chef, you start by shopping for ingredients and then you prepare and bake a delicious, homemade lasagna. The beauty of this process is that you can do it at a time that fits your schedule. Whether you choose to cook just one lasagna for a one-time effort, or you commit to preparing one every week, month or even five every other month, it’s entirely up to you.

Once your lasagna is ready, you then deliver it to a local family or individual in need. This aspect of the journey allows you to directly see the impact of your contribution and it often fosters a rewarding connection with those you’re helping.

The flexibility of the volunteering process ensures that it can fit seamlessly into your life, no matter how busy you are. Every lasagna made and delivered is a meaningful gesture of kindness and it’s a wonderful way to support your community on your own terms.

RAGÚ has also generously provided a warm welcome to new volunteers who signed up in July by offering a welcome thank you gift, which is a lovely way to show appreciation and encourage continued involvement.

In essence, these events are a great opportunity for people to get involved, learn more about the impact of their contributions and directly participate in addressing food insecurity in their communities. These events showcase what we do all year long. It’s also a collaborative effort that showcases the power of coming together to support one another, with a special thanks to RAGÚ for their generous support and commitment.

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23 million US adults in America struggle with food scarcity right now — what are some ways that people can help or volunteer to mitigate the severity of that number? Both in terms of Lasagna Love and overall?

Addressing food insecurity is a significant challenge, but there are meaningful ways you can get involved through Lasagna Love. Last year, from  January 1 to July 1, 2023, we received 81,766 requests for meals. In the same period in 2024, that number jumped to 103,715 requests. This dramatic 26.8% increase highlights the growing need for our services and the crucial role our volunteers and supporters play in meeting this need.

First and foremost, you can volunteer to cook and deliver meals in your local community. By signing up to volunteer, you can prepare and distribute homemade lasagnas, starting the ripple effect of kindness in your community. This direct action provides not just a meal but also a comforting touch of community support.

Another way to contribute is by helping to spread the word about Lasagna Love. The more people know about our mission, the more volunteers and donors we can attract, amplifying our impact. Sharing our social media posts, telling friends and family or hosting a fundraising event are all great ways to raise awareness and support our cause.

Lastly, if cooking isn’t your forte or you’re unable to volunteer directly, consider making a financial donation to Lasagna Love. Your contributions help us cover the costs of ingredients and support our growing network of volunteers.

For those who have no experience making lasagna "from scratch," what are some of your top tips?

• Make it easy: You don’t have to boil the noodles first! You don’t even need to purchase the no-boil noodles. Just grab any box of lasagna noodles and add about a half cup more water to your lasagna before baking and it will bake all at once saving time and dishes. You can also use simple shortcuts like RAGÚ Kettle Cooked Sauces make it easy to get that slow-simmered, homemade, rich flavor without making sauce from scratch
• Double up: If you have the ability to prepare multiple lasagnas, make one batch with multiple lasagnas and freeze your other lasagnas until it is time to be matched and delivered. That way you only have one set of dishes but multiple meals.
• Consider Bulk Buying if You Can: For those volunteers who like to bake often, buying in bulk is a real money saver! It helps to spread the love even further.
• Cook like a mother: You don't have to be a trained chef to whip up a delicious dish that brightens up someone's day. Stick to simple recipes, set out your ingredients before you start and give yourself the time (and grace) to give it a try. Remember: practice makes more delicious lasagna to share!

How exactly does the circulation or delivery itself work?

Our  volunteers are matched early in the week to someone who has requested a lasagna. The volunteer then coordinates a delivery date and time that works for both of them. Our volunteer will then deliver to the door of the person who has requested a meal.

"The goal is to distribute 10,000 lasagnas, adding 100 new monthly donors, recruiting 1,000 new volunteers and raising $100,000 to support the mission" —  what are some ways that people can help contribute to that effort?

Here’s how you can help us achieve these deliciously ambitious goals: Get involved as a volunteer, become a monthly donor, spread the word and fundraise with us.

I love the quote about how lasagna is a "symbol of hope made with love and hand-delivered with the utmost respect and dignity for the recipients." The statistics are amazing, by the way — LL has fed more than 2 million adults and children with 56,000 volunteers "across 50 states and in three countries." How incredible! What are the plans for Lasagna Love going forward?

I am incredibly excited about our future plans and the direction we're headed. Our primary goal is to continue expanding our reach and impact, ensuring that we can deliver even more lasagnas to families in need across the globe. Here’s a glimpse of what’s on the horizon:

• Expanding Our Volunteer Base: We aim to increase our volunteer network, making it easier for more people to join our mission and help their neighbors. We're focusing on streamlining our onboarding process and providing more support and resources to our volunteers to make their experience as rewarding and seamless as possible.
• Strengthening Community Connections: Building stronger ties within communities is at the heart of what we do. We plan to enhance our local partnerships and collaborate with more community organizations to identify and reach those in need more effectively.
• Enhancing Our Technology and Systems: We are investing in our technology infrastructure to improve our matching process and make it even easier for volunteers and recipients to connect. This includes better data management and user-friendly interfaces to ensure a smooth experience for everyone involved.
• Expanding Internationally: Following our success in the United States and the growing efforts in Canada and Australia, we’re looking to bring Lasagna Love to even more countries. Our goal is to create a global network of kindness, where the simple act of sharing a meal can transcend borders and bring people together.
• Increasing Fundraising Efforts: To sustain our growth and reach, we are ramping up our fundraising efforts. This includes launching new campaigns, engaging with more donors and exploring innovative ways to secure funding. Our aim is to ensure long-term sustainability and impact.
• Expanding Support Roles: Recognizing that not everyone can cook, we are expanding the variety of volunteer roles available. This includes administrative support, fundraising, community outreach and more. We want everyone who is passionate about our mission to find a way to contribute that suits their skills and interests.
• Continued Partnership: And of course, we will continue to nurture and expand our partnerships with great sponsors like RAGÚ, whose support has been instrumental in helping us reach more families and make a greater impact. These collaborations are vital to our mission and we are committed to working closely with our sponsors to create even more opportunities for spreading kindness.