RAGÚ® AND LASAGNA LOVE TEAM UP FOR A THIRD YEAR TO CELEBRATE NATIONAL LASAGNA DAY AND EMPOWER EVERYONE TO SPREAD KINDNESS AND BRING COMFORT TO THEIR LOCAL COMMUNITIES

Sign up to Become a LasagnaLove.org Volunteer and Find Easy and Affordable Lasagna Recipes at RAGU.com

MOUNT PROSPECT, Ill., July 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- National Lasagna Day, the popular holiday honoring the famed delicious Italian pasta dish, is happening on Monday, July 29. To join the celebration, iconic sauce brand RAGÚ^® has teamed up once again with the rapidly growing global nonprofit and grassroots movement Lasagna Love to sponsor the organization's National Lasagna Day program and help fight hunger in local communities.

This year, the RAGÚ brand has partnered with Lasagna Love's local chefs and volunteers who are preparing and delivering delicious homemade lasagnas with the goal of reaching thousands of community members through volunteer-led events spanning both major metro areas and surrounding suburbs across Chicago, Nashville, Atlanta, Paramus, NJ, and more.

"We're very excited to expand our support of Lasagna Love in their mission to help communities everywhere," said Megan Frank, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Mizkan America, Inc., the maker of RAGÚ. "Everyone loves a good, home-cooked meal but making one doesn't mean you have to spend all day cooking or break the bank for quality ingredients. RAGÚ Kettle Cooked Sauces offer an easy way for anyone to add a rich and savory homemade taste to their meals to enjoy at home or share with someone who needs one."

Available in three delicious flavors including Roasted Garlic, Marinara and Tomato Basil, RAGÚ Kettle Cooked Sauces are created from premium ingredients, including fresh garlic and oregano, crushed tomato and basil. The sauces are slow simmered in large kettles to create a rich and savory flavor that can be used to create a wide range of dishes, including pasta, dips, soups and more. The result is a meal that tastes like it took all day to create, but without the time and effort of creating it from scratch. RAGÚ Kettle Cooked Sauces are also Non-GMO Project Verified with no added sugar. RAGÚ Kettle Cooked Sauces are available in a 24-ounce jars at select retailers across the U.S., including Publix, Meijer, Kroger and more. Visit www.RAGU.com for lasagna recipes and more recipe inspiration.

This year, Lasagna Love is commemorating National Lasagna Day on a grand scale, aiming to distribute 10,000 lasagnas while setting ambitious goals of acquiring 100 new monthly donors, recruiting 1,000 new volunteers and raising $100K to support their mission.

"For us, lasagna is so much more than just a meal. It's a symbol of hope made with love and hand-delivered with the utmost respect and dignity for the recipients," said Andria Larson, executive director of Lasagna Love. "To date, we're proud to have fed more than two million adults and children through the help of our 56,000 volunteers across 50 states and in three countries. We're very excited to continue our partnership with RAGÚ to inspire more people to join our mission of serving others."

Sign up to learn more about Lasagna Love and how to get involved at www.lasagnalove.org. The first 500 new volunteers will also receive a welcome kit courtesy of RAGÚ and Lasagna Love. To get started today, follow these tips below and this recipe to make RAGÚ Three Cheese Beef Lasagna:

• Make it easy:  RAGÚ Kettle Cooked Sauces make it easy to get that slow-simmered, homemade, rich flavor without making sauce from scratch. Other shortcuts, like opting for no-boil noodles and pre-shredded cheese can also help shave time off dinner preparation without sacrificing flavor.
• Double up:  Double the ingredients when making the recipe to make a dish to share with a neighbor or layer your lasagna up high for an extra-cheesy, delicious dish to enjoy at home.
• 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!

RAGÚ Three Cheese Beef Lasagna

Prep Time:  20 Minutes

Cook Time:  45 minutes

Servings:  4

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 jar RAGÚ^® Kettle Cooked Roasted Garlic Sauce
• 1 container (15 oz.) part-skim Ricotta cheese
• 2 c. shredded part-skim Mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• 2 eggs
• 12 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Brown ground beef in a 12-inch skillet; drain. Stir in sauce; heat through.
2. Combine ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and eggs in a large bowl; set aside.
3. Evenly spread 1 cup meat sauce in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Layer 4 lasagna noodles, then 1 cup meat sauce and 1/2 of the ricotta cheese mixture; repeat. Top with remaining 4 noodles and sauce. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Bake uncovered for an additional 5 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

About Lasagna Love

Lasagna Love is a community-impact program that connects neighbors through gestures of kindness, goodwill and support. The nonprofit has joined together more than 56,000 volunteers from around the world and abides by three simple principles: feed families, spread kindness and strengthen communities. Lasagna Love fosters a culture of positivity, empathy, zero judgment and maintains a steadfast resolve to deliver comfort when needed most. Lasagna Love volunteers share a seminal purpose: exist to assist. To learn more about Lasagna Love and how you can get involved, visit www.lasagnalove.org or our social channels, @WeAreLasagnaLove (Instagram and Facebook).

About The RAGÚ^® Brand

The RAGÚ^® brand was founded in 1937 by Assunta and Giovani Cantisano and their sauce was originally sold from their home in Rochester, New York. Assunta carried her family's recipe from Italy when she immigrated to New York in 1914, and it has now been enjoyed by American families for over 85 years. With a wide selection of sauce varieties ranging from the beloved Old-World Style to the Chunky line, cheese sauces, Simply and RAGÚ Kettle Cooked sauces, RAGÚ empowers anyone to "Cook Like a Mother" regardless of gender or culinary skill. Today, RAGÚ sauce is the go-to pasta sauce for families coming together to share a quick and delicious meal and an invaluable resource for anyone who wants to "Cook Like a Mother" in the kitchen. For the very latest news, recipes and more from the RAGÚ brand, please check out the brand at www.RAGÚ.com. You can also follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and TikTok.

About Mizkan America, Inc.

Based in Mount Prospect, IL, Mizkan America, Inc., is a subsidiary of the Mizkan Group, a global, family-owned company that has been Bringing Flavor To Life™ for more than 220 years. As one of the leading makers of condiments and sauces in the United States, Mizkan America maintains 12 manufacturing facilities that serve the retail, foodservice, specialty Asian and food-ingredient trade channels. Since 2005, Mizkan America has seen dramatic growth and their portfolio now includes a wide variety of vinegars, Italian and Asian sauces, cooking wines, wine reductions, sushi seasoning and salad dressings. Mizkan America brands include: RAGÚ^®, Bertolli^®, Cucina Moderna^®, Holland House^®, Nakano^®, Mizkan^® Four Monks^® and Barengo^®. Mizkan America is also the exclusive distributor/sales agent for Angostura^® Bitters in North America. For more information, go to www.Mizkan.com.

About The Mizkan Group

The Mizkan Group is a privately held, international food manufacturer, headquartered in Handa City, Japan, with a heritage that spans more than 220 years. Always guided by the company's Two Principles (Offer customers only the finest products; and Continuously challenge the status quo), the Mizkan Group offers a line-up of well-known international brands under the Mizkan umbrella and is a leader in the liquid-condiment category. The Mizkan Group has operating facilities around the globe in places including Japan, China, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Netherlands, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan. More information about the Mizkan Group can be found at: www.mizkanholdings.com/en/.

Media Contacts:
Candace Corner  |  RAGÚ^®
[email protected]
(216) 965-6848

Alisha Dickinson | Lasagna Love
[email protected]
(858) 652-0061

SOURCE RAGÚ