3 musts while visiting the royal city of London: enjoy afternoon tea with friends at The Orangery at Kensington Palace; always say ‘yes’ to upgrading to the unlimited champagne option at Kensington Palace; wear a fancy (handmade) hat whilst drinking tea at Kensington Palace – it’s only proper.

London is such a vibrant and historic city with so much going on everywhere you look. You can’t help but feel royal when you are surrounded by elegant palaces, sacred abbeys, royal guards with the huge bearskin caps, and tree-lined cobblestone streets. I was leaving Buckingham Palace after just witnessing the Changing of the Guards, when I happened to run into guards leaving Kate and William’s (we are on a first name basis) home and crossing the street like it was no big deal. Is this real life?

Although I was over visiting friends in London, I had quite a bit of time to myself to be a complete tourist and explore on my own. I found London to be a very easy city to get around on foot, or by local bus and tube, because of all the helpful maps they have every few blocks. I was amazed at the beauty and character of every single building and curious about all the stories that must come from each from over the years. I’m so glad the weather ended up being beautiful and not too rainy because who wants to walk through palaces with soggy feet?

Having traditional British afternoon tea at Kensington Palace was one of the best experiences from my trip. We had lovely petite tea sandwiches, little cakes and out of this world scones, jam and clotted cream. Seriously, how is clotted cream not illegal? That is the best thing I have ever tasted! Of course, after we finished the food, we decided to have just one more bottle of champagne because after all, it was unlimited. I wanted to recreate that laugh-filled day by making a few unique tea sandwich variations alongside a nice cup of tea. Wasn’t about to attempt the clotted cream or scones – I’ll leave that to the Brit’s. Cheerio!

Yield: Each recipe makes 3-4 tea sandwiches

Note: Each sandwich is made with your standard white bread. Keeping the crust on the bread is totally up to you.

Greek Chicken Salad Tea Sandwich

Ingredients:

• 1 cooked chicken breast, shredded (I used rotisserie chicken because I was being lazy but you can easily bake the chicken in the oven on 400° with a little olive oil, salt and pepper for about 20-25 minutes or until cooked through)
• ¼ cup feta cheese, crumbled
• ¼ English cucumber, chopped
• 1 7oz container of plain Greek yogurt
• juice of ½ a lemon
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsp mint, chopped
• ½ tsp salt
• pinch of pepper

Preparation:

Mix everything but the chicken and feta together to create a creamy tzatziki sauce. Mix in the chicken and feta cheese. Divide the chicken salad evenly onto the bread for the sandwiches.

Curry Hummus Tea Sandwich

Ingredients:

• 1 14oz can of chick peas, drained and rinsed
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1-1½ tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp salt
• pinch of pepper
• a few slices of red bell pepper (about ¼-½ a pepper)
• small handful of mixed greens

Preparation:

In a bowl, smash chick peas with a fork. You want to keep it slightly textured and chunky and not completely to the consistency of hummus. Once mostly smashed, add in everything but the bell pepper and mixed greens. Smash again until everything is incorporated. Serve on the sandwich with sliced peppers and mixed greens.

Chipotle Egg Salad Tea Sandwich

Ingredients:

• 4 hard boiled eggs, chopped
• 1-2 chipotle peppers from a can in adobo sauce, chopped
• 1 tbsp adobo sauce from that same can
• 1-1½ tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• ½ cup cilantro, chopped

Preparation:

Combine everything but the cilantro. Divide mixture evenly on each piece of bread and top with cilantro for the sandwich. Enjoy with you favourite tea!