Breakfast this Royal morning reflects on a long-ago bed-confinment with a fairytale ending

On this day, as I’m preparing breakfast while I catch TV glimpses of the Royal Preoccupation, or Royal Wedding, happening at this hour, I joyfully reflect on that other wedding 30 summers ago. No different than millions of other onlookers, I, too, made mental reference to Prince William’s parents, Charles and Diana, and the “fairytale” nuptial that preoccupied millions in times past.

As I viewed that long-ago wedding on the morning of July 29, 1981, breakfast was being served to me as I lay bed-confined in pregnancy. The princess that I expected had been attempting to make her arrival too early; I was immobilized in an effort to keep her at bay just another hour . . . just another day until her October due-date. Watching the televised vows of Princess Di had been one of my main diversions that summer as I lay virtually without a flicker of movement and patiently and prayerfully waited for our red-letter event.

I “joyfully” reflect on the time surrounding that other wedding because all my confinement and immobilization, then and later, paid off. Our princess stayed put and was born at term, only two days before her due date. Although the joy was our own, private one, and not one shared by the world, I could swear that I heard the equivalent to those 5,000 bells at Westminster Abbey ring out at the moment of her birth. Today that daughter and her hubby are parents of their own little prince. God is good.

So what to feature in my blog on Royal Wedding morning? Breakfast, of course. A Royal “Huzzah” for Western Egg Bake, a breakfast casserole laced with lots of red and green bell peppers and green onions straight out of my garden. The recipe calls for purchased croutons, but I made my own with leftover homemade wheat bread that I sliced into cubes, seasoned, and toasted.

I found the recipe in a recent Kroger grocery circular and originally prepared it for Easter breakfast, with plenty of leftover slices to freeze and reheat. If you awakened at the wee (U.S.) hours this morning to see Kate walk down the aisle, you might need a good, sturdy pick-me-up such as Western Egg Bake to keep you propped up for the rest of the day.

You couldn’t pick a more healthy choice. Huzzah for the newlyweds! May God grant them a Christ-centered marriage that will withstand the world’s pressures and will endure long years until only death parts them. And Huzzah for health and foods fresh from garden!

Western Egg Bake

2 1/2 cups hot skim milk

1 1/2 cups croutons (either purchased or made from your own bread)

6 large eggs beaten (or 1 1/2 cups egg substitute)

2 cups sharp Cheddar cheese, grated

1/2 cup each red and green bell peppers, diced

1/2 cup green onions, chopped

1/2 cup turkey bacon (approximately 8-10 slices), cooked and crumbled

1/4 teaspoon each ground black pepper and salt substitute

Spray with nonfat cooking spray a shallow 1 1/2-quart ovenproof baking dish. In a large mixing bowl combine hot milk and l croutons. Let croutons soak for 10 minutes. Mix in remaining ingredients. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of one hour or overnight. If casserole has been refrigerated overnight, remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before you bake it. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until set. Refrigerate any leftovers. Serves 8.