The Latvian Care Package

You can take a Latvian out of Latvia, but you can’t take Latvia out of our taste buds. This list of what people most often send their loved ones abroad shows what care really tastes like: a mix of memory, ritual, and the kind of comfort that’s hard to find anywhere else.

Deeply Latvian Staples

If there’s one thing almost universally craved by Latvians abroad, it’s bread. But not just any bread – our bread. The kind that could be used as a metaphor about who we are: earthy, serious, no-nonsense, with a distinct character that’s hard to copy and even harder to forget.

Rye bread (rupjmaize), sourdough (), the deep-fried garlic slabs that share nothing but a name with the world’s idea of “garlic bread,” and even maizes zupa – a desert hard to translate because of its cultural and gastronomical specificity.

Once you’ve secured this all-important staple, it’s time to tailor the rest of the box to personal taste. Depending on the recipient, that might mean grey peas, buckwheat, flageolet beans, “Dzintars” cheese spread, dill-flavored crisps, or even a tin of that unmistakable “Liepājas” instant coffee. Because life just tastes better when the basics are done right.

Childhood in a Box

You can buy comfort foods anywhere in the world, but sweets and treats tied to childhood indulgences or home-country favorites just hit differently. When we pack treats to send to our loved ones, we always remember to include “Laima” confectionery classics – especially “Serenāde”, “Vāverīte”, “Vētrasputns”, and “Magone”. Travel logistics permitting, we’ll definitely throw in some Kārums curd snacks as well.

And, if you were to survey all the Latvian care packages sent abroad, you’d definitely find “Selga” cookies, Latvian marshmallows, “Gotiņa” candy, candied fruit, cranberries in powdered sugar, wafer cakes, and maybe even mini versions of our famous hazelnut meringue chocolate cake “Cielaviņa”.

Preserved With Love

Treats aren’t just about where they’re made – or even how they taste. They’re also about who made them, and the care they carry. Some of the most treasured items in Latvian care packages come infused with something store-bought goods can’t compete with: love, intention, and quiet mastery honed and shared through generations.

Think: mom’s pickles, apple compote, quince syrup, or jams only she knows how to get just right. Or honey sourced from a trusted beekeeper – liquid sunshine with all the sweetness of Latvian meadows captured in a jar. Or linden flower tea handpicked at the peak of the summer.

Perhaps also goods that epitomize the uniquely Latvian word “smeķīgs” – a term for something so deliciously hearty that you can only truly grasp its meaning after tasting Latvian smoked fish, smoked meat, or sauerkraut.

The Latvian care package is how we turn love into something you can unwrap. It connects us to the people we miss and to the place we come from. Each carefully chosen item carries more than flavor – it holds the weight of memory, the comfort of belonging, and the promise that no matter how far we travel, our roots are never more than a taste away.