Universal Yums is a monthly international snack subscription box. Every month, you’ll take a trip to a new country and munch on brand new exciting snacks. There are three sizes of box, the Yum ($14), the Yum Yum ($25), and the Super Yum Box. This is the Yum Yum box, and it’s a fun subscription that we get a kick out of each and every month.
In October, the yums are from Russia!
All of the items that came in my Russia Box!
The boxes are always full of yummy goodies and packed nice and neat.
This inside of the informational brochure relates all the layers in Russia to the Russian stacking dolls we all know about.
The information for all the yums come in a great booklet each month.
The information book has notes about all of the items and their ingredients.
These books are so informative – it includes a bit of the snack’s history and how it might taste.
Holodets and Horseradish Husks – This is one of Russia’s most iconic specialties. Holodets is the Russian word for Cold Meat Jelly but Universal Yums tells us not to freak there is no actual meat jelly in these sticks. Just the bold and unique flavor of holodets and horseradish. So let me say I was not sure about these at all. Reading the info kind of freaked me out a bit but I gave them a shot and they are ok. They have a bit of a bite to them and a little odd flavor but they were ok. I do not think it was enough to try the actual thing.
Tula Pryanik – Now this is something I can get behind. Tula Pryanik is a Gingerbread made with condensed milk and honey and is from the most famous maker in Russia. We are a gingerbread household and my older lists it as his favorite cookies. We had about half this and he’s taking the other half for snack one day this week.
Red October Krepysh – Red October produces the most famous chocolates and candies in the country and has been around since 1851 in one name or another. This is a yummy toffee bar with peanuts in it.
Blackcurrant Zefir – A light and fluffy marshmallow meringue covered in chocolate infused with blackcurrant, a sweet berry that grows throughout Russia.
Shashlik Potato Chips – You know I’ve said before that potato chips are my jam and these are no exception. I’m all about these. These bring a taste of Russia’s summer in the taste of their authentic Russian shashlik, a grilled meat shish kabob. Much like many recipes here in the US the family shashlik recipes are passed down from generation to generation. While I wasn’t sure about a meat flavored chip these were some I could eat.
Korovka Fairy Tale Roll Cake – These taste to me like a Little Debbie’s style cake and I want to think these are a Russian version. Universal Yums tells us the history of how these came about in the hard Soviet time of Russia’s history when they were in bakeries and elaborately decorated. The current version is not as decorated but we can add our own adornments to the cakes for a fun twist.
Grilled Potatoes with Shallots – Potatoes are a big part of the Russian diet so why wouldn’t we have a shallot and potato flavored wheat snack in the box. These remind me of something but I can’t quite put my finger on it. I’m not in love with them but they are ok just not my favorite. What did these remind you of?
Grapefruit Chocolate Bar – Here is why I would not do good living in Russia. Due to the chilly climate, there is not much fresh fruit and what they do have is imported from other countries. With it being had to get its a high commodity and not common. My family lives on fruit so it would be hard for us to give that up. In Russia they get their sweet citrus taste from candies like this with grapefruit filled dark chocolate bar.
Salmon and Cheese Husks – While I liked the first sticks in the box I’m just not feeling these. Not sure I”m big on anything salmon and cheese flavored. They are not two of my more favorite things.
Korovka Baked Milk Biscuits – Cookies with a baked milk center? Yes, please. What a great addition to the box and easy to pop and eat as we worked out way through the yums.
The smaller candies in the box come all sealed up in their own Yum bag!
Caramel Dreams – These are faux caramels and don’t contain any milk or cream. These are fondant filled candies that are flavored with zesty lemon and tart apple jam.
Forest Fairy Honey Peanut Delight – Russians love honey and these are chocolate covered honey and peanut candy.
Juicy Light Peach & Apricot Jellies – These candies are a chocolate covered fruit jelly candy. We got two flavors in tour box with peach and apricot.
The October Russian Universal Yums was a yummy box for us. I wasn’t sure what to expect since I know very little about Russian foods and while I like some of these yums. I’m not sure it’s the snack spot for me. We always love to get our box and not only try the yums but look up the country and find out some of it’s history. It’s a great way to get the whole family involved.
Have you tried Universal Yums? What do you think?
Comments
There are three levels of boxes, not two. The largest is the Super Yum box for $39.
Since I like horseradish, I liked the holodets and horseradish husks. I like salmon but am allergic to it, so I was hoping the salmon and cheese husks would remind me of salmon and cream cheese on bagels, but I didn’t think they tasted like much of anything. Disappointing. Although I generally dislike marshmallows, the blackcurrant ones covered in chocolate were among my favorite things in the box. I also particularly liked the little cake rolls and the chocolate covered jelly candies (I’ve always loved jelly center chocolates). Haven’t tried the potato & shallot flavored wheat snacks yet, but the other things were ok. So far, my least favorite was a tie between the salmon husks and the shashlik chips.