I think mercury was in retrograde recently as I awaited a package from Central Market. I thought I’d never received it, when actually it was hiding out in my husband’s office. For a month.

But the stars lined up. The package was found and what emerged was a lovely basket of Central Market Organics products for me to sample. (That’s the disclosure part.) Here’s my honest opinion of the Central Market Organics products I received.

I’ve been on a beverage sampling kick lately (See my Izze esque review here.), so I started with the licorice root and peppermint tea. As it steeped, I reached for the sugar out of habit, but quickly stopped myself. Glad I did. The sip began with a gentle mint flavor woven with floral notes. The finish offered a lasting taste of licorice root that was lightly sweet, very pleasant and extremely satisfying. Amazing. I loved it.

But tea isn’t the only product I want to write about here. The shorties were especially excited about the Peanut Butter Dots, a multi-grain cereal coated with peanut butter. In addition to being organic, this product is billed as free of artificial preservatives, colors and flavors, as well as cholesterol. The kids enjoyed it, and while I don’t generally eat cereal for breakfast, you might find me stealing the lightly sweetened peanut butter orbs out of their bowls during the morning routine. I’ve purchased more of this product at my local HEB.

The CM Organics Light Agave Nectar is actually a product I was familiar with and purchased prior to receiving this package. When I was trying to kick the artificial sweetener habit, I used agave nectar in my coffee. And if I remember correctly, the CM product was considerably less expensive than the agave nectar I had been using. I appreciated that. It is suitable for use in hot and cold beverages, including cocktails. And why agave nectar? It is a low glycemic and natural sweetener. But calorie counters take note: it has no fewer calories than honey.

I’m a big oatmeal fan, but I don’t do instant. I prefer the texture of slower cooking oatmeal to their quickly prepared cousins. The addition of flax is terrific, but the Oats & Flax Instant Oatmeal was just a tad sweet for my taste. As a healthy, time-saver type of product, I’d rate it better than average. Note: the one oatmeal-eating kid in my house liked it.

Other organic products in the mix included were two milks – a vanilla flavored rice milk and a vanilla flavored almond milk — both tasty products for folks with dairy allergies and sensitivities who are concerned about the environment as well. And the apricot preserves were preferred by my 11 year old foodie and me.

And because I love to leave you with a recipe, try this for an easy, healthy snack that adults and kids will enjoy. Enjoy. -alyce eyster