Spreading love through ? lasagna? Delaware cooks make free pasta dishes for those in need

For a national nonprofit organization, love is layered between silky sheets of ribboned pasta, soft plops of herby ricotta cheese, gooey stretches of mozzarella and spoonfuls of sweet, bubbling tomato sauce.

Lasagna is an Italian comfort food that can feel like a warm hug. The classic layered dish has its own made-up holiday on Saturday, July 29, also known as National Lasagna Day, but some Delaware cooks celebrate it year-round by making the dish and giving it away for free to those in need.

Delaware has 100 active volunteers statewide who participate in Lasagna Love, a nonprofit launched in early 2020 by Rhiannon Menn. The mom from Hawaii first began baking and delivering pans of lasagna to her neighbors during the pandemic.

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Her act of cooking kindness in turn inspired Lasagna Love, a viral, grassroots campaign that quickly swept the nation.

Since Lasagna Love began, more than 45,000 volunteers from all 50 states have fed more than 1.5 million people and delivered upward of 350,000 pans of lasagna to individuals in need.

Delaware’s Lasagna Love leader is Lea Cassarino. She said last year 3,914 people were fed in Delaware and 969 homes received free lasagna deliveries.

Delaware volunteers also help feed homeless shelters, fire departments, senior centers and other nonprofit community support organizations.

Volunteers can sign up for "just this once" lasagna making or they can cook every week, every other week, or monthly.

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"Lasagna Love is a win-win for all involved," Cassarino said.

"Our volunteer lasagna chefs prepare and deliver food to those in need, and feel rewarded helping out others,'' she continued. "Those who request a meal receive a delicious lasagna cooked with love, and the knowledge that their community cares. As food insecurity increases, we are always in need of additional volunteers — all you need is the ability to cook and a big heart!"

How it works is simple: Volunteers purchase the ingredients, prepare the lasagna, and provide contactless deliveries to their recipients.

There are no income limitations — needs can be financial, illness-related, or emotional.  Individuals can request a lasagna or nominate a recipient at lasagnalove.org/request  Families are matched with local volunteers via an online portal.

To celebrate National Lasagna Day, Lasagna Love volunteers in New Castle County plan on delivering pans of lasagna on July 30 and July 31 to three group homes run by Horizon House, which provides services for people in recovery from mental illness and substance use. The lasagnas will feed about 40 people.

Kent County volunteers prepared lasagna for about 25 people on July 26 for the Dover Interfaith Mission, a homeless shelter in Dover. In Sussex County, on July 25, Lasagna Love volunteers fed about 150 to 200 homeless individuals at The Shepherd’s Office in Georgetown.

To learn more about Lasagna Love and how you can volunteer or sign up for a meal, visit www.lasagnalove.org, or on social media @WeAreLasagnaLove (Instagram); and on Facebook at facebook.com/WeAreLasagnaLove.

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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Delaware cooks make free lasagna for those in need. Want to help?