Four Layer Opera Cake

Assalam, maaf dipinta, sekiranya kebelakangan ini puan tanah tak begitu aktif mengupdate, faham2 ajelah ya, asal dah masuk tahun baru, semuanya nak kena adjust schedule balik..ditambah juga dengan ada beberapa perkara yang harus di settlekan this few days, & the next few days juga.. 

As teman2 yang mengenali kita di facebook, mesti dah tahu, hari Isnin yang lalu, results O level dah keluar, walaupun hati ini tenang aje, tapi  entah macam mana, bila waktu pukul 2.00pm(results out) hari tu melepasi hingga ke pukul 3.00pm, masih belum mendapat berita dari Hasif, jantung kita ni tiba2 berlari dengan kencang sekali macam 'kudaku lari kencang' gitu...heheh...lutut pun naik lemah aje..nak buat satu kerja pun tak larat dah..heheh.. Alhamdullilah shukur, lepas semuanya dah tahu, barulah mak ada selera nak makan dan barulah boleh berfikir what to do next..

Well, disebabkan hari Tuesday 10th Jan semalam, adalah hari lahir Mr Hubby, hari Isnin malam selepas dah settle semuanya barulah kita mulakan project buat Opera cake ni..bayangkan kita start buat pada jam 10 malam dan habis pada jam 5 pagi!!!!!..ingatkan nak buat pada siang hari Isnin, tapi pasal tak ada mood nak buat apa2 so nak tak hendak buat lah juga malam harinya..

I tell you, kita baca the steps tu berulang2 kali sebab nak fahamkan betul2.. kita a bit confuse sikit part ambil 1/3 telur putih then masukkan kedalam, almond mixture, then masuk balik ke 2/3 tu..then  I realised, part almond mixture + melted butter, not in the steps, then bila nak masukkan that mixture, dah tak tahu dah..huhu... dah mula nak nangis dah, jam dah pukul 12 pagi, ingat nak tanya Rima, kat comment box dia, tapi I guessed by the time she reply mesti tak tahu bila, so I read her entry sekali lagi, then she gave a link for the earlier post on Opera cake, I read and sungguhlah nasib baik sebab the steps said to put in the melted butter + almond mixture tu lepas adding the 1/3 egg whites with the remaining almond mixture ...phew..hehe

So here it is..my Opera cake yang seadanya..tak lah secantik puan punya yang original..maklum ler buat  tengah malam, orang mengantuk buat kek macam ni lah..hehe..seharusnya kena chill dulu at certain steps tu tapi disebabkan mak dah tak tahan mengantuk sangat, mak main tenyeh aje ler..oh yes, mocha buttercream tu jangan ikut macam kita sebab kita tak buat satu adunan kita buat 1/2 adunan so macam sikit aje tengok. Sukatan gula tu macam biasalah ya kita adjust ikut selera dirumah ni.. ..Apa2pun, overall feedback dari Mr Hubby sedapppp!!!!..The kids pun suka..kita pun suka..Insyaallah next time kalau nak buat lagi mesti nak kena plan betul2,tak mau kelam kabut dan tak mau buat tengah malam heheh..Thanks Rima for sharing this marvelous recipe, minta izin dipanjangkan disini pula ya..

Four Layer Opera Cake

Sources:-From Rima@ Bisousatoi.com

Sources:-From Ayu@curlybabesatisfaction

Ingredients

200g finely ground almond

100g caster sugar-(Ayu used 35g)

6 eggs

50g butter, melted

60g all purpose flour

115g egg whites-(Ayu used 31/2 'AA' size eggs)

55g confectioner sugar - i used caster sugar-(Ayu used castor sugar too, 50g)

Methods

-Preheat oven to 200C.. Prepare two pans (20 x 20 cm), greased and lined with baking paper.

-In a large bowl combine ground almond, caster sugar and 3 eggs, beat at high speed for 10 minutes, scraping often.

-Add remaining eggs one at a time, continue to beat for another 10 minutes.

Stir in 4 tbsp of almond mixture into melted butter and mix till well combined, set aside.

-Add sifted flour to the remaining almond mixture, mix well... put aside

In another bowl, beat egg whites til foamy, add sugar gradually and continue to beat until soft peaks formed.

-Take 1/3 of egg white and pour into almond mixture and mix it gently(Ayu add in the melted butter +almond mixture at this point too).. pour back almond mixture into the remaining 2/3 egg white mixture and continue to fold in gently.. dont overmix or u might deflate ur egg white..

-Divide and spread into prepared pans, bake both pans at once for 20 mins in 175C. Cool completely, remove from pans, discard paper and slice it into total 4 layers.

After making Joconde, here are the key components you cant't skip at all:

Coffee Syrup:

100ml hot brewed espresso - u can of cos use 15g of instant coffee with 100ml hot water-(Ayu used nescafe)

100g sugar-(Ayu used 50g)

Mocha buttercream-(Ayu halfed this, next time to get nice layer should use the full amount for this)

100g egg whites-(Ayu used 50g)

200g sugar-(100g, but Ayu used 50g)

300g unsalted butter - cubed and chilled and let it out once u start to whip ur egg white/sugar-(Ayu used 150g)

1/2 tbsp mocha paste-(Ayu used 1/4 tsp + 1/2 tsp coffee emulco)

1tsp coffee oil - u can use coffee essence/flavor if u cant find coffee oil-(Ayu didnt have this so didnt put in)

Chocolate Ganache

200g dark chocolate compound

200g milk chocolate compound - i used a mixture of 70%, 64% and 55%)

75g unsalted butter

250 ml fresh cream - i used double cream-(Ayu used whipping cream)

Method

Coffee Syrup:

Mix all ingredients, stirring until sugar dissolves. Set aside.

Mocha buttercream:

1. Using double boiler.. heat egg white and sugar till sugar dissolved - use ur thermometer ok.. heat till 65C..-(Ayu cant find her thermometer, grrrrr.... so agak2 dissolved put boiler away from heat, bantai ajelah nyah!)

2. Pour egg white mixture into ur mixing bowl and whisk using high speed till mixture turns glossy.. add in cubed butter one at a time and continue to beat till its slightly fluffy.. (buttercream texture)

3. Add in coffee oil, mocha paste and 50ml of coffee syrup into buttercream.. stir till well combined.. set aside

Chocolate Ganache:

1. Chop the chocolate into small pieces.

2. Heat cream until warm. Remove from heat and pour it over chocolate.. let it sit for 5 mins and stir

3. Add in butter and continue to stir well again.

4. Put it aside till it thickens.

Assembling

There are various way to assemble Opera, you can find many on internet. Heres my version..

- Place one sheet of joconde upside down (top of the cake on bottomside).

- Brush thoroughly with coffee syrup until moist.

- Spread one part of coffee cream evenly over the cake.

- Cover with another sheet of joconde, always upside down.

- Brush thoroughly with coffee syrup until moist

- Cover with thick ganache and cover with another sheet of joconde.

- Repeat above steps until all joconde, coffee cream and ganache are stacked completely. Chill for 10 minutes.-(Ayu just couldnt wait so just stacked...grrrrr again)

- Double boil remaining ganache over low heat just until simmer, pour evenly on the top. Chill for another 30mins.

- Trim the sides thinly to remove excess cream & ganache to reveal the layers of art and delicacy.

Serve it as a luxurious semifreddo dessert on your special occasion.