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Opera Cake

When John and I went on our honeymoon we had Opera Cake for the first time (image above), and it was delicious!! We haven't been able to find any in Rochester (anyone know of somewhere??) So I decided to make some myself. You basically make a thin almond sponge and then layer it with coffee butter cream and top it with a chocolate ganache.

We have recessed lighting in our kitchen which makes it wonderfully bright, sometimes too bright for food photography though as you can see by this picture. You will also notice my cake looks nothing like the professional one from the bakery *whomp whomp* yeah it looked pretty darn sad... and I scorched the chocolate... which is never a good thing (it came out totally lumpy).


Things I learned... leave Opera Cake to the professionals, guess we'll just have to go on another vacation to get some... don't mind if I do! If you want to try I found the recipe here.


11 chews:

Jeanne said...

Don't leave it to the professionals! You don't have to succeed the first time. Try again I say. (If you want to that is...)

Lo said...

I've always wanted to attempt opera cake. It's a big challenge -- and I think you've done wonderfully for your first time. Definitely give it another go, particularly if the flavor was even close! (sometimes the flop desserts are even tastier than the picture perfect ones!!!)

Tracy said...

I've never heard of this cake before, but now I definitely want to try it! Of course I can't exactly make an almond sponge since I'm allergic to peanuts/nuts, but experimenting could be fun! :-)

Emily said...

Gosh, I admire you for making it! I've heard it's one of the hardest things to make. I bet it was delicious.

Meg Luby said...

looks divine! thanks for sharing :)
-meg
@ http://clutzycooking.blogspot.com

Hannah said...

Oh I love opera cake! That was one of my all-time favorite things that came out of my stint as a Daring Baker. And so what if it wasn't perfect looking? I'm sure it was still delicious.

Unknown said...

But how did it TASTE?

Also, didn't we learn with Pad Thai that maybe it's not necessarily you who failed, but the recipe? Try, try again!

stephchows said...

Thanks for the support everyone! You all rock :) It did taste good, not as good as the bakery one, but I think I will try again! :)

stephchows said...

Thanks for the support everyone! You all rock :) It did taste good, not as good as the bakery one, but I think I will try again! :)

Lo said...

I've always wanted to attempt opera cake. It's a big challenge -- and I think you've done wonderfully for your first time. Definitely give it another go, particularly if the flavor was even close! (sometimes the flop desserts are even tastier than the picture perfect ones!!!)

Eftychia said...

It sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing.

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