Sunday, October 24, 2010

Opera cake


Opera cake is one of my favorite cake, it is very rich of chocolate with coffee flavor. Very good to have a slice of it with a cup of black coffee or tea.

One day I found the recipe and I was thinking that would be very difficult to make because of the preparation.

Yes, there are alot preparations and you should make 5 things separately. But it will be paid off when the cake is done.

The 5 things that you should prepare are:

1. Jaconde Biscuit/Almond Biscuit
    125 gr almond powder
    125 gr caster sugar
    30 gr flour
    4 yolk eggs
    4 white eggs
    25 gr butter (melted)
    20 gr powder sugar (icing sugar)

- Mix caster sugar and yolk eggs until creamy and fluffy (about 15 minutes),  add almond powder and flour, mix with low speed for maximum 5 minutes..
- Mix white eggs and powder sugar until stiff and mix with flour mixture.
- Add melted butter and mix it well with spatula.
- Divide into 3, and pour into tin bake (20X20X3 cm) and bake them for 10 minutes or golden.


2. Chocolate Ganache (filling)
    5 gr instant coffee
    200 gr dark cooking chocolate
    150 gr fresh cream
    75 gr butter

- Put fresh cream and instant coffee in a pan or heatproof bowl that stand over a pan of simmering water then add chocolate, still until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.
- Add butter, stir well. Divide into 4 and put aside.



3. Coffee Buttercream.
    10 gr instant coffee
    2 tbsp warm water
    125 gr butter
    200 gr icing sugar

- Mix instant coffee and warm water, put aside.
- Mix butter and icing sugar until creamy and fluffy, add the coffee mixture, stir well and put aside.



4. Chocolate Ganache (glazing).
    80 gr darl cooking chocolate
    80 gr fresh cream

- Put fresh cream in a pan or heatproof bowl that stand over a pan of simmering water then add chocolate, still until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.


5. Coffee Syrup.
    20 gr instant coffee
    150 ml warm water

- Mix instant coffee and warm water, put aside.

Finishing:



a.    Take one jaconde as first layer, spread with thin chocolate ganache (filling), put inside refrigerator for 10 minutes.
b.    Take out the jaconde from refrigerator, spread with buttercream (2 times from chocolate ganache) and put it back to refrigatrator for another 10 minutes.
c.    Take out from refrigerator, put the second jaconde for second layer, wipe with coffee syrup to all over jaconde.
d.    Repeat step a to c, until the last jaconde or last layer.
e.    At the last layer, before spread with buttercream, take the 4th part of chocolate ganache (filling) and spread around the cake, then spread buttercream on top of the cake and put it in refrigerator for 10 minutes.
f.     Take out the cake and the last step is cover the top of the cake with chocolate ganache (glazing) and the cake is ready.


As I said before, to make this cake is taking a lot of times and patient. but it’s worthed.


Kabul, 24 October 2010