Traveling Without Actually Going Anywhere: Universal Yums from Around the World

The December 2022 box from Universal Yums was touted as their Holiday Box, which came packed with snacks from all around the world and not from just one country.

1) Salted Egg Yolk Popcorn from Taiwan = This snack was absolutely gross! The popcorn was soft and had a strong, unpleasant smell. It almost had a caramel corn-like consistency. It was one of my husband’s least favorite snacks in this month’s box. Apparently, eggs are typically eaten at most celebrations in Taiwan!

2) Spicy Mustard Flavored Chips from the Czech Republic = Some chips had a lot of spice, but others did not. We learned that Czechs celebrate Generous Day on December 24th, which sounds a lot like Thanksgiving in the U.S.

3) Strawberry Trifle Flavored Bonbons from the United Kingdom = These treats definitely smelled like strawberries! There were very chewy and definitely not was I was expecting! I liked the flavor, but it was too chewy and got stuck in my teeth. I hate it when food gets stuck in my teeth! My husband didn’t like them either.

4) Popcorn Flavored Truffles from France = Soft chocolate surrounded a piece of crunchy popcorn in this delicious snack! My husband and I both really liked this treat! It tasted better than the chocolate covered popcorn bites we had in the Italian box from the previous month.

5) Apple Pie Cookies from the Netherlands = These cookie bites were delightful! Some tasted like graham cracker crust, while others tasted like white chocolate with a slight apple taste. My husband liked the cinnamon flavor of these cookies. We found out from the packaging that these cookies actually had dried apple pieces in them!

6) Mini Raspberry Linzer Cake from Switzerland = I am not a huge fan of raspberry, so I was not a huge fan of this cake. My husband liked it though! He wrote, “unlocked nostalgia” on his card to describe this cake.

7) Nutty Yogurt Flavored Nougat Bar from Greece = This wafer cookie with yogurt nougat and pistachios was definitely not my favorite snack from this month’s box. It wasn’t gross, but it was not good. It was also chewy. I don’t understand why people like pistachios in their snacks!

It was nice to have treats from all around the world instead of one country. I think if Universal Yums were to do another box like this, they could put in one snack from the United States that isn’t very popular in the United States. For example, they could include a Goo Goo Cluster from Nashville, Tennessee; its claim to fame is that it is America’s first combination candy bar invented in 1912! Just a suggestion in case anyone from Universal Yums is reading my blog!

The trivia in this month’s booklet had holiday facts from all around the world. Did you know that Ukrainians decorate their Christmas trees with spider webs?!? According to an old story, a spider felt sorry for a poor family who didn’t have money for decorations, so it spun webs around the tree to decorate it!

I also learned that jelly doughnuts are a traditional treat eaten in Israel during Hanukkah. In addition, the Japanese like to eat chewy rice cakes to celebrate the New Year. This month’s booklet also provided statistics from Universal Yums: in 2022, Universal Yums had treats from 23 different countries!

The January 2023 box looks like it will be packed with treats from the European country of Austria! Stay tuned to learn what we eat from that country!