Australian Chocolate Slice

Chocolate slice is an easy to make Australian treat, perfect to scale up for a crowd or keep it small for a few treats. It’s kind of like a cookie bar, topped with a chocolate glaze, and is sure to please.

Cafe culture in Australia 

Many cities in Australia have a big cafe culture and virtually every town has a neighborhood bakery. Both are a great place to try some tasty sweet and savory treats.

Some serve more traditional treats, while others are more creative in what they offer.

While coffee is certainly very popular in cafes, tea is also a very popular drink, as is the concept of teatime, no doubt a carry-over from the British colonial period in Australia’s history.

In fact in Australian schools, they will often talk about “morning tea” meaning morning snack.

The classic bakery items have a strong British influence as well. You’ll find almost any bakery has sausage rolls and savory meat pies, both with British origins, on the menu.

When it comes to sweet goods, while some items may have British influence, you’ll find many more uniquely Australian items, as well as influences from around the world like brownies and croissants.

The Australian slice

Many cafes and bakeries in Australia serve one or more “slices” which are a bit like cookie bars or sheet cakes. 

Some slices certainly seem to have British origins, and some like the chocolate caramel slice is essentially the same as millionaire’s shortbread, popular in Scotland (where it likely originates).

Another classic, vanilla slice, is similar to what would be known as a napoleon in the US and comes from the French mille-feuille.

The idea of a “slice”, though, is certainly very much part of Australian culture.

These days you’ll find a huge range of slices both to buy and made at home. Some are more simple and traditional, like lemon slice, but you’ll also find people getting creative with flavors and fillings.

Some believe the popularity of slices is that they are easier than making a cake but seem like you have to put in more effort than simply making some cookies. They are also perfect to make in larger quantities for things like fetes and bake sales, where they grew in popularity in the past.

This chocolate slice is one of the more traditional slices that makes a great snack for parties, or an after school treat.

Making chocolate slice

You’ll find a few different variations on chocolate slice, some of which are no bake and others baked, as this one is.

Some have a softer, fudgier base, while others are more firm. Pretty much all have a chocolate frosting/glaze on top.

This slice is easy to make as all you do is mix the dry ingredients, then separately mix the melted butter and egg then combine them.

Flatten this into the bottom of a lined dish then bake to firm it up.

Prepare the frosting shortly before the base finishes baking and put it on while the base is still warm as it will spread more easily with the warmth.

Try not to work it too much as it will become more uneven.

You can easily scale up or down the recipe depending on how much you want. You can also cut the pieces smaller or larger to suit.

How to store chocolate slice

Any extra slice can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for a couple days.

You can also freeze it, separating slices with parchment paper.

Chocolate slice is a classic Australian bar that would fit in anywhere as a party dessert, after-school snack or teatime treat.

Easy and tasty, it’s certainly worth a try.