Retail Roundup

If you’ve never ridden the carousel over at South Coast Plaza, now’s

the best time to do so. No, they haven’t added any more unicorns. But all

proceeds raised between now and Oct. 31 will be donated to the New York

City Public and Private Initiatives Disaster Fund. Additionally,

individual donations will be accepted at concierge desks located

throughout the center. The group is a nonprofit organization that

provides aid to those who have lost a family member during the rescue

efforts in New York.

Warning: You may want to try them separately

So, chef Emeril Lagasse’s got a new prime-time TV sitcom and now he’s

got some pasta sauces. While the latter’s probably a lot easier to

swallow, it may not stay down if the former comes into play

simultaneously. In other words, it’s probably best to eat the sauce long

before the show comes on.

Anyway, the five new pasta sauces hit stores in October, so mark it on

the calendar and count down the days. The restaurateur and cookbook

author -- big surprise -- also hosts a show on the Food Network and has a

line of original seasonings, salad dressings, marinades and pepper

sauces.

All of that only raises the question: Where’s the line of ice cream

and automobiles? Our guess: In development as he cashes his huge paydays

into Swiss accounts. Makes you wonder what happened to the Swedish chef

and Julia Child.

Take the cranberry flavor out of the fruit

For those who want to eat sweetened and dried cranberries but don’t

like them, there’s Ocean Spray’s new installment called Craisins. Yep,

they come in a slew of flavors that transforms the cranberry taste into

those of cherries and oranges. And they’re not half bad. For those

watching their beautiful figures, the snacks are fat- and

cholesterol-free. And, of course, they also come in dried cranberry

flavor. Ew.