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[World] European weather: Winter heat records smashed all over continent

January 3, 2023 Published by

BBC News world 

EPA

Spain has seen unseasonably warm weather over the Christmas period

Temperatures for January have reached an all-time high in a number of nations across Europe.

National records have fallen in eight countries – and regional records in another three.

Warsaw, Poland, saw 18.9C (66F) on Sunday while Bilbao, Spain, was 25.1C – more than 10C above average.

The mild European weather comes as North America faces more severe storms, days after a deadly winter cold snap left more than 60 dead.

Heavy snow and freezing rain have been forecast for parts of the northern Midwest while severe thunderstorms and tornadoes are expected in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana.

But on the European side of the Atlantic, the weather has been balmy for many places at the start of the year.

Temperatures in the Netherlands, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Latvia, Czech Republic, Poland, Denmark and Belarus broke national records.

Station records were broken in Germany, France and Ukraine.

Snow shortage threatens Alps with wet winter seasonVanishing glaciers threaten Europe’s water supply

The temperature recorded in Warsaw on 1 January was 4C higher than the previous record for the month, and Belarus’ record high was 16.4C, some 4.5C above the previous record.

In Spain, New Year’s Day temperatures in Bilbao were equivalent to the average in July, and parts of Catalonia including Barcelona are subject to restrictions on water use.

Records are broken all the time, but it is unusual for the difference to be more than a few 10ths of a degree.

In Switzerland, temperatures hit 20C, and the warm weather has affected ski resorts across the Alps.

It’s not all warm in Europe, though – colder temperatures and snow are forecast in parts of Scandinavia and Moscow is expected to drop to -20C by the weekend.

EPA

Warm temperatures mean cherry blossom has come early to the Polish city of Szczecin

Just days earlier, the UK, Ireland, France and Spain declared 2022 their hottest year on record.

In the UK, every month but December was hotter than average. December itself saw snow fall across large parts of the country, although conditions are milder and wetter now.

Heatwaves have become more frequent, more intense, and last longer because of human-induced climate change.

However, winter events such as these do not have the same human impact as summer heatwaves, which can result in large numbers of excess deaths.

The world has already warmed by about 1.1C since the industrial era began and temperatures will keep rising unless governments around the world make steep cuts to emissions.

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Watch: Alps glaciers melting faster as heatwaves hit

 

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Brazil’s president, thousands of mourners line streets to pay final respects to legendary soccer player Pelé

January 3, 2023 Published by

Latest & Breaking News on Fox News 

Brazil mourned Tuesday as legendary soccer player Pelé was laid to rest.

Tens of thousands of mourners from fans to dignitaries, including Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, visited Santos to pay their final respects to the soccer legend. 

Pelé’s coffin was transported by the fire department from Vila Belmiro stadium to his final resting place. 

The procession passed the house of Pele’s 100-year-old mother.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Pelé’s mother, Celeste Arantes, did not make an appearance, but his sister, Maria Lucia, was seen waiving from a balcony. His mother celebrated her 100th birthday in November at the beginning of the 2022 World Cup.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and the first lady of Brazil, Rosangela “Janja” da Silva, attended the open casket service and were seen embracing Pelé’s widow. A moment of silence was observed at the service for the late soccer player.

PELÉ’S DAUGHTER POSTS EMOTIONAL MESSAGE AFTER SOCCER LEGEND’S DEATH

FIFA President Gianni Infantino also visited Brazil to bid farewell to one of the greatest soccer players of all time.

A funeral procession began at the Vila Belmiro stadium where his coffin had been placed with one stand draped in a banner that said “Long live the King,” Pelé’s nickname during his playing days.

Some of the most remarkable moments of Pelé’s career happened on the field of Vila Belmiro stadium. The stadium was adorned with Brazilian flags and No. 10 Pelé jerseys.

NEYMAR JR., CRISTIANO RONALDO AMONG THOSE GRIEVING LOSS OF BRAZILIAN SOCCER STAR PELÉ

Fans waited up to three hours to view the coffin inside the stadium in the middle of the field.

Lula da Silva was recently re-elected to his third term as Brazil’s president. Brazil’s government previously declared three days of national mourning after Pelé’s death.

“Pelé is incomparable as a soccer player and as a human being,” Lula said shortly after arriving at the stadium.

Pelé’s name became synonymous with the sport of soccer. He played for Santos from 1956 to 1974 and was known as the “King of Soccer.”

After attending the memorial Monday, FIFA’s Infantino noted he would ask soccer associations in every country throughout the world to name a stadium after Pelé.

“The most important in any case is to pay tribute to King Pelé, and whilst I humbly suggested that throughout our 211 member associations at least one football stadium or venue is named after him, we will set the example by giving the pitch in our headquarters the name ‘Estádio Pelé,” Infantino said.

Some soccer stars attended the wake, including former Brazil midfielder Ze Roberto, who helped place Pele’s coffin in the center of the field Monday.

Brazilian television was suspended to ensure that only the procession was being broadcast at the time, similar to Argentina’s media treatment of Diego Maradona’s death.

At his peak, Pelé was arguably the most well-known athlete on earth. He met with world leaders, from presidents to queens. At one point, a civil war in Nigeria was temporarily suspended to watch Pelé.

A diverse crowd came from near and far to get a glimpse of Pelé’s coffin Tuesday. Many of the mourners may have never seen Pelé play, but they wanted to bid the legendary athlete a farewell.

 

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NFL star Damar Hamlin still in critical condition after cardiac arrest

January 3, 2023 Published by
Damar Hamlin leaves the field after an NFL football game on December 1, 2022, in Massachusetts.
Damar Hamlin leaves the field after an NFL football game on December 1, 2022, in Massachusetts. (Greg M. Cooper/AP/File)

An update posted on Damar Hamlin’s 2020 GoFundMe campaign said they are thankful for the “renewed support” for the fundraiser following his injury during Monday’s game.   

“If you would like to show your support and contribute to Damar’s community initiatives and his current fight, this is the place to do so. This is the only current fund that is being used by the Hamlin Family,” the post said.  

As of 2:15 p.m. ET on Tuesday, the GoFundMe had more than $4.4 million worth of donations.  

The fundraiser was initially established in 2020 to support fundraising for Hamlin’s Chasing M’s Foundation, the post said.

“However, it has received renewed support in light of Damar’s current battle and we can’t thank all of you enough. Your generosity and compassion mean the world to us,” the update said.  

Leigh C. Lehman, director of communications for GoFundMe, told CNN in an email, “I can confirm the update was posted on behalf of the family and we are in touch with their representatives.” 

The foundation supports toy drives, back-to-school drives, kids camps and more.  

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What Matt Gaetz and AOC Talked About During Kevin McCarthy’s Speaker Vote

January 3, 2023 Published by

The Intercept 

Opponents of Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s bid for the House speakership are digging in after a tense discussion on the House floor between Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

The pair’s conspicuous exchange in the back of the chamber on the first day of the 118th Congress was caught on C-SPAN — and noted by many members in the building. Thanks to Gaetz and his far-right allies, McCarthy, a California Republican, failed to win the speakership on the first round of voting.

Gaetz told Ocasio-Cortez that McCarthy has been telling Republicans that he’ll be able to cut a deal with Democrats to vote present, enabling him to win a majority of those present and voting, according to Ocasio-Cortez. She told Gaetz that wasn’t happening, and also double-checked with Democratic party leadership, confirming there’d be no side deal.

What happened here? Can anyone read lips? pic.twitter.com/r7PR3Srcyg

— MeidasTouch (@MeidasTouch) January 3, 2023

“McCarthy was suggesting he could get Dems to walk away to lower his threshold,” Ocasio-Cortez told The Intercept of her conversation with Gaetz on McCarthy’s failed ploy. “And I fact checked and said absolutely not.”

Democratic Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York won all 212 of his party’s votes, a show of unity that, if it holds, requires McCarthy to win over all but four of his colleagues.

Gaetz, who has shown a willingness to break with the GOP establishment, said that his crew of McCarthy opponents was dug in and would continue to resist him, adding that McCarthy has been threatening opponents with loss of committee assignments. A private gathering of Republicans ahead of the vote had been heated, multiple sources said. (Gaetz did not immediately respond to a request for comment.)

McCarthy and Gaetz presented their positions in dueling press conferences Tuesday morning. McCarthy said that Gaetz and his allies had requested plum committee assignments in exchange for supporting his speaker bid. McCarthy also accused Gaetz of telling Republican members that he was willing to elect Jeffries as speaker rather than accede to McCarthy. Gaetz told reporters that he and his allies didn’t trust McCarthy.

Ahead of the second round of voting, Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, who won six votes for speaker in the first round, nominated McCarthy again. Then Gaetz rose and nominated Jordan. All 19 McCarthy opponents voted for Jordan in the second round, leaving McCarthy again at 203 votes — 15 short of what he needed.

Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz. another McCarthy opponent, also huddled with Ocasio-Cortez in the chamber, where they discussed the possibility of adjourning the House. (Gosar did not immediately respond to a request for comment.)

In the first round, McCarthy won just 203 votes, losing 19 of his colleagues. McCarthy has been insistent on remaining in session, as have his opponents. Adjourning without choosing a speaker would be embarrassing to Republicans but might also give time for McCarthy to break the opposition one by one.

Ocasio-Cortez was noncommittal on the tack, as an adjournment strategy would require party leadership.

The post What Matt Gaetz and AOC Talked About During Kevin McCarthy’s Speaker Vote appeared first on The Intercept.

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Some bosses are using the threat of a possible recession this year to give workers an ultimatum: Come back to the office or be fired

January 3, 2023 Published by

Business Insider 

About half of leaders said their company requires, or was planning to require employees to return to in-person work full-time between early 2022 and early 2023, according to one survey.

Peter Dazeley/Getty Images

Some companies have been threatening to fire workers who don’t return to the office, The Wall Street Journal reported. 
Bosses are gaining leverage over employees due to recession anxiety. 
But most people will likely keep their jobs in the event of a recession, experts say.

If your boss has been trying to get you out of house slippers and back into business casual, they may have found some leverage. 

That’s because the recession that could hit this year is giving employers a leg to stand on in their pandemic-long fight to get workers back in the office. 

Employees at investment firm Vanguard told The Wall Street Journal’s Chip Cutter that management threatened to fire workers — without severance — if they didn’t comply with recent return to office mandates. Vanguard, in addition to companies like Paycom, have sent memos to employees in recent weeks asking them to adhere to hybrid schedules or come into the office more. 

A Vanguard spokesperson told The Wall Street Journal that working from the office is essential for both the experience of its clients and workers. 

“It’s not going to be so easy to give up your job,” Kathryn Wylde, chief executive of the Partnership for New York City, a nonprofit collective of nearly 300 CEOs, told Reuters last month. “That will probably mean that people are less resistant to the requirement they are back in the office at least three days a week — which is where it feels like it is headed.”

It’s a shift that’s happened slowly but surely over the last few months, as workers lose some of the hard-fought ground from the labor shortage. Over the course of the pandemic, workers grew bolder, with the number of strikes tripling between 2021 and 2022 and people continuing to see wage gains as they hopped from one job to the next amid a Great Resignation climate. Employees have also been getting historic raises, although inflation is so high it only amounts to real wage gains for a handful of them. 

In addition to better pay and benefits, workers have also made remote work a a make-or-break benefit, preferring to axe their commute time, avoid COVID-19 exposure, and strike a better work-life balance from their homes. But with job security becoming less certain, companies are looking to challenge that. 

About half of leaders said their company requires, or was planning to require employees to return to in-person work full-time between early 2022 and early 2023, according to a September Microsoft survey of 31,102 workers around the world. In contrast, 64% of staffers said they have or would consider looking for a new job if their employer wanted them to return to the office full-time, according to an ADP survey of 32,000 people last year. 

Aside from higher pay or “better career opportunities,” a flexible working arrangement, which includes the option to work remotely, was the greatest motivator to find a new job, according to a McKinsey survey from last summer. According to another report by Adobe last year, 51% of 5,500 enterprise employees interviewed, workers at companies with more than 1,000 employees, preferred complete flexibility in scheduling, while only 16% said their ideal work week would involve no flexibility at all, with a “start and end work according to a set work schedule.” 

That was before news of layoffs hit some companies, something that’s worrying workers. A survey from Insight Global last summer found that 78% of US workers are worried about losing their jobs during the next recession.

But those worries may be overblown. Layoffs are indeed hitting companies like Facebook and Microsoft, where thousands are getting cut, but the tech industry is an outlier and most workers are likely to keep their jobs in the event of a recession, experts say. 

White-collar industries like banking, tech, and real estate, which experienced hiring boons at the start of the pandemic, are more vulnerable, as they’re shedding the employees they gained earlier — which means workers bargaining for remote work flexibility might not need to blink so soon. 

Read the original article on Business Insider

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US stocks slump in first trading day of 2023 as recession fears weigh on investors

January 3, 2023 Published by

Business Insider 

Bryan R Smith

US stocks slumped in their first trading session of 2023, after posting their worst year since 2008.
Tech stocks led Tuesday’s decline, with Tesla sinking more than 12% and Apple falling as much as 4%.
Investors are concerned that stocks could fall further if the Fed continues hiking rates, which could tip the economy into a recession.

US stocks slumped Tuesday in their first trading session of 2023, after posting their worst year since 2008, amid fears of a looming recession and continued rate hikes from the Federal Reserve.

Tech stocks led the decline, with Tesla stock down 12% after missing delivery goals in the fourth quarter while Apple slid 4% on reports of weakening demand, bringing its market cap below $2 trillion intraday for the first time since May. The last time Apple closed below $2 trillion was June 2021.

Early Tuesday, S&P Global’s US purchasing managers index for manufacturing fell below forecasts and indicated the steepest contraction in activity since May 2020.

The November Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey on Wednesday and the December payroll report on Friday will offer some guidance on the Fed’s next policy move, as Chairman Jerome Powell has cited a tight labor market as one of the reasons why rates must remain restrictive.

Here’s where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. closing bell on Tuesday: 

S&P 500: 3,824.13, down 0.40%Dow Jones Industrial Average: 33,136.37, down 0.03% (10.88 points)Nasdaq Composite: 10,386.98, down 0.76%

Here’s what else is going on: 

The S&P 500 could see a 16% return in 2023, as one indicator is sending bullish signals, according to Bank of America.Wharton professor Jeremy Siegel outlined three surprises that could shake up the stock market in 2023, and predicted benchmark rates will ease to 2%-3% by the end of the year.Disgraced crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried asked a judge to keep the identities of two people who secured his $250 million bail package secret as he pleaded not guilty to fraud charges.The crypto market lost $3.7 billion to fraudsters and hackers in 2022, marking the worst year in the industry’s history.Nobel laureate Paul Krugman blamed Elon Musk’s bizarre Twitter antics for accelerating Tesla’s inevitable decline.

In commodities, bonds, and crypto: 

Oil prices dropped, with West Texas Intermediate down 3.9% at $77.11 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell 4.2% to $82.32 a barrel.Gold rose 0.83% to $1,838.94 per ounce.The 10-year yield slipped 3.4 basis points to 3.797%.Bitcoin fell 0.53% to $16,647.40.

Read the original article on Business Insider

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Stock Market Live: Stocks Turn Lower In Mixed 2023 Debut; Treasury Bond Yields Ease

January 3, 2023 Published by

Updated at 1:26 pm EST

U.S. stocks turned lower Tuesday as global stocks kicked-off new year trading on a mixed note, powered in part by softer Treasury bond yields and positive economic data from Europe but capped by worries over aggressive central bank rate hikes.

With trading volumes still thin, and some major markets closed over the tail end of the holiday season, stocks are set for a firmer open following their worst performance since 2008, which saw a 20% decline for the MSCI World Index and the loss of more than $18 trillion in global equity value.


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McCarthy fails to secure Speakership on historic second ballot

January 3, 2023 Published by

Just In | The Hill 

Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) failed to win the Speakership on a second ballot Tuesday afternoon, sending the race for the top spot to a third ballot.

McCarthy received 203 votes, the same as on the first ballot and fewer than the 218 needed to secure the gavel in the chamber. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) secured 212 votes, winning support from the entire Democratic caucus.

All 19 McCarthy detractors, who had split their votes among several lawmakers on the first round, coalesced around Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) on the second.

McCarthy did not win over any Republicans on the second ballot, a troubling sign for the GOP leader who has vowed to remain in the race for as long as it takes him to become Speaker. The same 19 Republicans voted against him on the second ballot as the first.

The Speakership race, which hasn’t gone to a second ballot in a century, now goes to a third ballot with neither side publicly backing down.

Jordan only received six votes on the first ballot — Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) secured 10 votes the first time around, while Reps. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) and Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) and former Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) each received one.

Jordan’s 19 votes came despite nominating McCarthy for Speaker on the second ballot and, shortly after, voting for him. The Ohio Republican has said he does not want to serve as Speaker and instead wishes to chair the House Judiciary Committee.

“To my friends here on this side of the aisle, I would just say this: The differences we may have, the differences between Joyce and Jordan or Biggs and Bacon, they pale in comparison to the differences between us and the left, which now unfortunately controls the other party,” Jordan said in his nominating speech.

He ticked through three objectives for the 118th Congress: passing bills that fix problems, approve budgets and government funding through regular order, and conduct investigations and oversight.

“We had better come together and fight for these key things. These three things, that’s what the people want us to do,” he said. “And I think Kevin McCarthy is the right guy to lead us. I really do, or I wouldn’t be standing up here giving this speech.”

Shortly before the second ballot began, Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), who voted for Biggs on the first ballot, said the McCarthy detractors are pushing for Jordan because he does not want the job, calling the Ohio Republican a “reluctant warrior.”

“The leading vote-getter for the Republican Party will do or say anything to win. That desperation that has set in where his life’s ambition has been for this job. That’s part of what makes him wrong for this job,” Good said. “We want a reluctant warrior who is willing to serve if called upon, and Jim Jordan is that person.”

The list of Jordan supporters comprises Good, Biggs and Reps. Dan Bishop (N.C.), Lauren Boebert (Colo.), Michael Cloud (Texas), Eli Crane (Ariz.), Andrew Clyde (Ga.), Matt Gaetz (Fla.), Paul Gosar (Ariz.), Andy Harris (Md.), Mary Miller (Ill.), Ralph Norman (S.C.), Scott Perry (Pa.), Matt Rosendale (Mont.) and Chip Roy (Texas), and Reps.-elect Josh Brecheen (Okla.), Anna Paulina Luna (Fla.), Andy Ogles (Tenn.) and Keith Self (Texas).

Al Weaver contributed.

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US reopening visa and consular services at embassy in Cuba

January 3, 2023 Published by

Top News: US & International Top News Stories Today | AP News 

FILE – A classic American convertible car passes beside the United States embassy as Cuban flags fly at the Anti-Imperialist Tribune, a massive stage on the Malecon seaside promenade in Havana, Cuba, July 26, 2015. The United States Embassy in Cuba is opening visa and consular services on Wednesday, Jan 4, 2023. It was the first time since a spate of unexplained health incidents among diplomatic staff in 2017 slashed American presence in Havana(AP Photo/Desmond Boylan, File)

HAVANA (AP) — The United States Embassy in Cuba is reopening visa and consular services Wednesday, the first time it has done so since a spate of unexplained health incidents among diplomatic staff in 2017 slashed the American presence in Havana.

The Embassy confirmed this week it will begin processing immigrant visas, with a priority placed on permits to reunite Cubans with family in the U.S., and others like the diversity visa lottery.

The resumption comes amid the greatest migratory flight from Cuba in decades, which has placed pressure on the Biden administration to open more legal pathways to Cubans and start a dialogue with the Cuban government, despite a historically tense relationship.

They are anticipated to give out at least 20,000 visas a year, though it’s just a drop in the bucket of the migratory tide, which is fueled by intensifying economic and political crises on the island.

In late December, U.S. authorities reported stopping Cubans 34,675 times along the Mexico border in November, up 21% from 28,848 times in October.

Month-to-month, that number has gradually risen. Cubans are now the second-largest nationality after Mexicans appearing on the border, U.S. Customs and Border Protection data shows.

The growing migration is due to a complex array of factors, including economic, energy and political crises, as well deep discontent among Cubans.

Hub peek embed (Cuba) – Compressed layout

While the vast majority of Cuban migrants head to the U.S. via flights to Nicaragua and cross by land at the U.S. border with Mexico, thousands more have also taken a dangerous voyage by sea. They travel 90 miles to the Florida coast, often arriving in rickety, precariously constructed boats packed with migrants.

The exodus from Cuba is also compounded by rising migration to the U.S. from other countries like Haiti and Venezuela, forcing the U.S. government to grapple with a growingly complex situation on its southern border.

The renewal of visa work at the embassy comes after a series of migration talks and visits by U.S. officials to Havana in recent months, and may also be the sign of a slow thawing between the two governments.

“Engaging in these talks underscores our commitment to pursuing constructive discussions with the government of Cuba where appropriate to advance U.S. interests,” the U.S. Embassy said in a statement in November following an American delegation’s visit to Cuba.

The small steps are far cry from relations under President Barack Obama, who eased many American Cold War-era sanctions during his time in office and made a historic visit to the island in 2016.

Visa and consular services were closed on the island in 2017 after embassy staff were affflicted in a series of health incidents, alleged sonic attacks that remain largely unexplained.

As a result, many Cubans who wanted to legally migrate to the U.S. have had to fly to places like Guyana to do so before migrating or reuniting with family.

While relations have always been tense between Cuba and the U.S., they were heightened following the embassy closure and the Trump administration’s tightening of sanctions on Cuba.

Under President Joe Biden, the U.S. has eased some restrictions on things like remittances and family travel from Miami to Cuba, but has fallen short of hopes by many in Cuba that a Biden presidency would return the island to its “Obama era.”

Restrictions on tourist travel to Cuba, and imports and exports of many goods, remain in place.

Also kindling tensions has been the Cuban government’s harsh treatment of participants in the island’s 2021 protests, including hefty prison sentences doled out to minors, a constant point of criticism by the Biden administration.

Cuban officials have repeatedly expressed optimism about talks with the U.S. and steps to reopen visa services. Cuban Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Carlos Cossio said in November that ensuring migration through safe and legal pathways is a “mutual objective” by both countries.

But Cossio also blamed the flight of tens of thousands from the island on U.S. sanctions, saying that “there’s no doubt that a policy meant to depress the living standards of a population is a direct driver of migration.”

 

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I’m a Trained Chef and Pasta Snob, and This New Gut-Friendly, Bone Health-Boosting Alternative Pasta Changed My Life

January 3, 2023 Published by

Well+Good 

It seems like every time I visit the grocery store, I come across a new alt-pasta brand featuring nutrient-rich ingredients that go way beyond your standard durum wheat semolina (chickpea, brown rice, soy, lupini bean, or sorghum pasta, anyone?). Of course, as a big fan of both pasta and the wonders of a well-balanced gut microbiome, I’m always eager to check out the newest kid on the shelf—which has led me to Solely’s brand-new organic green banana fusilli pasta. And I must say, it definitely exceeded my expectations.

Full disclosure, I’m kind of a snob when it comes to boxed pasta—especially ones made with a not-your-average list of pasta ingredients (namely, green bananas). For boxed pasta to get my seal of approval, it has to meet a few key standards: cook to a perfectly al-dente texture, can hold sauce well, and taste great (obviously!). And, believe it or not, Solely’s green banana pasta does all that and more. That’s because this new variation of pasta is also loaded with gut health benefits, thanks to its star ingredient—green bananas, aka slightly under ripe bananas—that taste great and offer loads of nutrition perks. Here, a few reasons why I’ll be making dinner with this boxed pasta until further notice.

Why Solely’s organic green banana fusilli pasta is worth trying

Just a few weeks ago, Solely—the organic food brand that makes other products like spaghetti squash pasta, fruit gummies, and fruit jerky—launched a first-of-its-kind healthy pasta alternative to the market, aka their new organic green banana fusilli pasta. Upon first impression of the pasta’s packaging, I was startled to see that it has a ridiculously short ingredient list. It’s comprised of just one item: organic green banana, which is shocking considering how similar its taste and texture are to traditional pasta.

This fusilli-style pasta is ideal for making savory pasta dishes, is paleo-friendly, gluten-free, vegan, and certified organic, and it’s loaded with iron and potassium. Each box of this green banana pasta—which has about three servings per container—is made with five organic green bananas. (And! Nothing! Else!)

Per serving one cup, it packs about four grams of fiber, two grams of protein, 65 milligrams of calcium (six percent daily value), five milligrams of iron (30 percent daily value), and a whopping 1040 milligrams of potassium (20 percent daily value). Bananas, am I right? Potassium is, after all, one of the most critical minerals the body needs to function: It helps regulate the body’s fluid levels and blood pressure and can help lower your risk of stroke and heart disease.

Meanwhile, iron (which is one of the most common minerals people are deficient in) is essential for making hemoglobin, which carries oxygen via your red blood cells through the body. Keep in mind that the high iron levels in this vegan-friendly pasta also make it ideal for those that follow a plant-based, vegan, or vegetarian diet—or anyone that doesn’t consume iron-rich, animal-derived foods like red meat, oysters, and fish.

Photo: Solely

My honest thoughts on Solely’s green banana pasta

As a lover of all-things pasta, this alternative version made with green bananas really blew my mind. For starters, its taste and texture are just like a wheat-based box of pasta. Ready in just three to four minutes, this fusilli pasta comes out perfectly al dente every time. On its own, it has a slightly cooked-veggie aftertaste, which totally disappears when slathered with a little bit of your favorite sauce or condiments. And unlike ripe bananas, this version—made from green (unripe) bananas—isn’t sweet whatsoever.

Of course, despite its startling similarities to traditional boxed pasta, Solely’s green banana pasta is, well, green. Or rather, a very dark green, almost black color that’s perhaps one of the only visual differences between traditional pasta and this new alt-version. The pasta gets its rich black color as a result of the natural process used to dry the green bananas. And although the color might seem a little puzzling at first, it definitely won’t influence your opinion upon the first bite… i.e. when you immediately realize how darn good it tastes.

After cooking, straining, and rinsing the pasta, I decided to season it with a bit of salt, pepper, butter, and parmesan to make it cacio e pepe style using a little bit of Churn’s Cacio E Pepe Butter. And let me tell you, it was so good. Seriously, aside from tasting so great, this pasta is loaded with tons of health benefits (gluten-free, grain-free, dietary fiber, iron, potassium, organic…the list goes on and on), which is why this alt-pasta will have a permanent residency in my pantry year-round. BTW, it’s currently available nationwide at Whole Foods Market for $3.99 (or on Amazon) and on their website, coming soon.

This three-ingredient banana ice cream recipe will make you go b-a-n-a-n-a-s:



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