Saint Gianna Molla+ Lasagna + Risking Life for Life

Cooking With Catholic History

Saint Gianna Molla+ Lasagna + Risking Life for Life

Apr 24, 2026

Welcome to Cooking with Catholic History where in each posting we talk about Catholic people and/or events and a related topic, as well as look at one of my personal takes on recipes.

This time we’re talking about Saint Gianna Molla, Risking Life for Life, and Lasagna. You’ll love it!

Saint Gianna Molla

Born in Magenta Italy in 1922 Giovanna Francesca Beretta was an active Catholic and quite skilled in the medical field. She got medical degrees in medicine and surgery with a focus on pediatrics from the University of Pavia, which still exists in Pavia Italy today. Using her God given knowledge and expertise she opened an office in Mesero about 30 miles or so from where she went to university.

In Mesero Gianna met Pietro Molla. They fell in love and got married. Thus, she became Gianna Beretta Molla. Over the next several years, they were blessed with three children. Then two miscarriages.

They conceived again. This time there were complications. It was discovered that Gianna had a tumor. The doctors felt that both the removal of the tumor and a hysterectomy immediately afterwards were the only way to ensure Gianna’s survival. This of course would mean terminating the pregnancy and ending the life of the child she was carrying. There was also the recommendation of abortion, again for the stated purpose of according to measurements of science saving Gianna’s life. Aware of the risks and possibly fatal consequences she chose to preserve the life of her child. So it was that they removed the tumor and she gave birth seven months later to a daughter who would bear her name. An infection developed due to complications and a week after giving birth Gianna Molla died at home. Her last recorded words were “Jesus, I love you. Jesus, I love you.”

A beautiful interview with her oldest son by National Catholic Register (here)

Lasagna

With Saint Gianna Molla being a mother, I thought of a classic slower lasagna dish that is great for feeding families and her being blessed to have the family she did. The way my family and I approach lasagna is a bit more fit for a modern family on the go.

Prep Time: 5-7min
Cooking Time: 3+ Hours
Servings: 8 depending on how hungry all you are

Materials & Equipment

Equipment

Ingredients

Prep

  1. Put the tomato sauce, mushrooms, ground meat, garlic powder, onion powder, and 1 tbsp of the Italian seasoning mix in a pot on the stove.
  2. Mix the ingredients in the pot together and let them just warm up, we’re not looking for anything to cook just mixing and helping flavors start their integration (about 5-7 min on medium-low stirring a few times).
  3. On the side mix the cheeses with the remaining herbs.

Cooking

  1. On the bottom of the slow cooker put a layer of dry lasagna noodles (about 1/3), you can break them if you feel inclined to make them fit.
  2. Put a layer of meat and sauce mix (about ½).
  3. Put a layer of the cheese and herb mix (1/3 of the mix).
  4. Put another layer of noodles (another 1/3).
  5. Put the rest of the sauce.
  6. Put a layer of the cheese and herb mix (1/3 of the mix).
  7. Put the last layer of noodles.
  8. Top with the last of the cheese mix.
  9. Put on the lid.
  10. Slow cooking on high for 2 ½ to 3 hours (alternatively on low for 5-8 hours on low) then checking the temp for 165F for the turkey to be done for food safety.
  11. Thank God and remember He loves you!

Risking Life for Life

Saint Gianna Molla was in this life a wife, a mother, and a doctor. She risked and ultimately lost her life to save that of her daughter, Gianna. Parents are called to look out for their kids’ lives, spiritual and physical, and risk their own to protect them. Historically mothers’ lives have been at high risk just bringing children into this world.

Yet, most often when we think about people who risk their lives for life, we think of first responders, military, and the like. This isn’t wrong. Still there are others We should recall who risk their lives for life. Even if they don’t think about it themselves. In addition to many parents, especially in the past when medicine and technology weren’t where they are now.

In today’s world teachers are often risking their lives, at least in the United States. The amount of violence in schools is astronomical. On top of that, teachers themselves as individuals can be targeted by students or their families in or out of school settings. When you look at the goal of a teacher being that they are there to impart the knowledge needed for their students to successfully navigate this chaotic world to the best of that teacher’s ability they’re looking for that student’s survival in the long run and their life is at risk. Sometimes in some of these situations of violence teachers put themselves directly as the means of survival for their students, directly risking their lives for those of their students. Events that were horrid and appalling when I was a kid that would grip the country are now frequent news quickly passed over, and that level of danger deserves more recognition, not ignorance.

Doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals risk their lives. We often think about advances in science and medicine then stop considering the risk to doctors today. Yes, science and technology have come a long way and often when protocols are followed, they protect medical professionals quite well when they’re tending to those in need. The risks and dangers aren’t eliminated. Combining that with many threats today on doctors and medical personnel for when outcomes are less than desired, or even people threatening them for saving lives, these threats can turn into attempts. Similarly, when violence is over finance, which isn’t in the control of some of these individuals. They are risking their lives to “first do no harm.”

It is known that Christians are persecuted in places in this world today. Now I don’t mean petty name calling online. I am talking about kidnappings and martyrdom that are occurring at places in this world today. We do give some news time to the incidents that occur in locations such as the United States, where I’m writing from, and other Christian majority western countries not all make the news that occur therein let alone outside those borders. Christians, including Catholics put their lives on the line in many countries of the world to just practice the faith. Priests, Deacons, Nuns, and Eucharistic Ministers are often targeted for their importance in the transmission of the faith and the distribution of the Body of Christ. Some modern examples (including a one lay Blessed Maria Laura Mainetti, Jacques Hamel, Vivian Uchechi Ogu, the Annunciation Catholic Church shooting victims (2025), St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Owo Ondo State Nigeria (2022), and the list goes on & on in individual and groups. In each case, the incident happened because of their faith. All of them, including young Vivian, involved transmission of faith and its tenants thus encouraging protection of eternal life.

Ultimately, these diverse vocations—from the quiet sacrifice of a mother to the public witness of a martyr—reveal a profound truth of our faith: that love, in its purest form, is always sacrificial. Saint Gianna Molla did not seek out death; she sought to protect life, and in doing so, she mirrored the Crucified Christ. Whether it is a teacher standing in the gap for their students or a priest ministering in a land of persecution, these individuals remind us that true “pro-life” is not a political stance, but a lived reality that often requires us to place our own safety on the altar. As we reflect on their courage, let us not only offer our prayers for their protection but also ask ourselves how we might risk our own comforts to safeguard the lives and souls of those entrusted to us.

That’s all we have for today.

Remember God loves you! I keep you all and your intentions in my prayers daily.