Pinch and a punch... etc

Pinch and a punch for the first day of the month. White rabbit. Slap and a kick for being so quick. This is generally how every first-day-of-the-month started while at school. I'm yet to teach my son these games, mainly because he is still figuring out what the days of the week are, introducing dates and months would through him a little too much... So to celebrate the first day of May (HOW DID IT GET TO MAY ALREADY???!), here's a little morning tea treat which many would have experienced in their lunch boxes growing up, with a bit of a delicious, buttery addition. Enjoy.

Chocolate and Coconut slice
Recipe from Taste.com.au
150g butter, melted, cooled
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup plain flour
1/3 cup Self-Raising flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
3/4 cup desiccated coconut

Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. Grease a square pan then line with baking paper.

Place butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla in a large bowl. Stir until well combined. Sift over flours and cocoa. Add 1/2 cup coconut. Stir to combine. Spread mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until firm to touch.

Chocolate Frosting
3 egg whites, at room temperature
130g caster sugat
200 - 250g butter, at room temperature
40g cocoa
1 tsp vanilla extract

In a stainless steel bowl, add the egg whites and sugar. Boil some water (enough so when the stainless steel bowl sits over the top, the water is not touching the bottom) over a medium heat until the water is simmering, then turn the heat off and immediately place the stainless steel bowl over the water and beat the eggs and sugar until thick (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat and continue beating until the mixture returns to room temperature. Next turn the beater down to a medium-low speed and add the butter, a tablespoon at a time. Beat each tablespoon of butter until completely combined with the mixture (this is important, the buttercream won't work if you add too much at one time). When the mixture is thick, stop adding butter. The mixture will sometimes resemble a curdled effect just before it is ready. This is caused by the butter not being incorporated properly. To fix, just turn beater up to high and beat until thick. Finally beat through the cocoa and the vanilla extract. Spread over the top of the slice and refrigerate so the buttercream becomes more solid (leave it out of the fridge if you prefer a soft, light effect). Feel free to dust with more cocoa or with chocolate shavings.