The Sunday before I entered something like seventh grade, I remember my mother let me have one “junk-food day” where I got to pick a fast food restaurant. Times have changed and most kids eat like that more as a rule than an exception.  Here’s a relatively healthy treat that children can make with parents to celebrate the last days of summer ‘08.

Pineapple Cake

Add a large can of crushed pineapple to a bowl with the contents of a box of dry angle food cake mix. Combine and bake in a 9- by 13-inch dish according to package directions.

Seafood’s other spices

It was an awakening when I first realized that “Cajun” wasn’t the only way to season seafood. With a dateline of Hunt Valley, Md., Old Bay Seasoning reports it worked with Houston chef Danton Nix of Danton’s Gulf Coast Seafood Kitchen to develop a recipe called Galveston Bay Shrimp Boil with Old Bay. I have a yellow and blue tin of Old Bay in the pantry as well as a new version with 30 percent less sodium. Look for the product in blackened, garlic and herb, lemon and herb and other varieties. I’m about to try an Old Bay Steamers bag for shrimp. Use it in the microwave for three to four minutes and “toss the mess.” Here are ideas for Old Bay, which refers to itself as “The Definitive Seafood Seasoning.”

• Sprinkle on popcorn and fries.

• Create sandwich heaven; add to mayonnaise.

• Shake it on the grill for chicken, fish and steak.

• Take corn to another level.

• Make the ultimate bloody Mary.

• Jazz up potato and pasta salads.

• Spice up eggs.