Thursday, May 29, 2008

it's not over, 'til the....

last bite is eaten?




This month's daring baker challenge was to make an Opera Cake. The challenge (other than having to put together this complicated cake) was to make it with light flavorings, invoking thoughts of summer and dedicated to Barbara of Winos and foodies dot com and her sponsorship of A Taste of Yellow a way of celebrating LIVEStrong Day.



An Opera Cake consists of layers of syrup-soaked joconde (almond sponge cake), separated by buttercream and covered by a thin glaze (generally chocolate). I understand that a ganache can be involved as well but I did not make ganache, mainly because I am running late in the completion of the challenge.

I wish that I had given the flavorings more thought because I made everything almond flavored. It is a bit overpowering. I loved reading of everyone else's flavor concoctions. If I made it again, I might make lemon & raspberry or peanut butter and jelly (weird, but it could be cool, right?) They all sounded yummy! To see the other Daring Bakers Opera cakes, see the Daring Baker blogroll.

I wasn't pleased with the way my cake rose. Otherwise, it was pretty easy. I lined my jellyroll pans with parchment paper sprayed with Baker's Joy spray, so that they wouldn't stick. It was pretty, but next time I'll get extra chocolate to make shapes to decorate the cake. That would have been the icing on the cake!

If you would like the recipe, check the blogroll or send me a comment and I'll be happy to send it to you. It is rather long, so be prepared! Don't worry. It isn't too difficult!




13 comments:

Dolores said...

Great job with May's challenge. Now that you've got the basics mastered, just think of all the delightful flavor combinations you can explore!

Lunch Buckets said...

My family was NOT thrilled about all the chill time. NOT thrilled indeed!

PAT A BAKE said...

hi there. Lovely cake. Yeah, its not over till the last bite. Cya at future challenges. Visit my blog too.

Barbara said...

Thank you Charlena for the dedication. I like the idea of raspberry and lemon as flavours.

Lis said...

Looks delish! Now see, I wish my cake hadn't risen as much - I love the look of the thinner cake layers and well.. the opportunity for more buttercream and mousse is just all the better for me. hahahaa!

Your cake looks lovely, sweetie!

xoxo

Charlena said...

I've just spoken with my sis and she said that I shouldn't worry about the thinness of the layers because they should be thin for an Opera Cake. She also suggested gold leaf covered jordan almonds for garnish and some suggestions for future Opera Cakes (passionfruit). I don't know why I didn't consult with her before the challenge - she is a pastry chef!

Rachel said...

Great job on the challenge....inspite of the cake not having risen..it looks lovely

Molly Loves Paris said...

Nice looking cake, really. I think all you needed to do was cut the cake in half and pile one half on top of the other. Then it would be tall enough. The cake was just supposed to cook, not rise. Next time I'm using a smaller pan.

Gabi said...

Nice job- I'm glad you didn't say "fat lady sings" cause considering the caloric load of this recipe that would be me and I really can't sing ;)
xoxo

Shari@Whisk: a food blog said...

A daring cake for a daring baking group! Great job!
Shari@Whisk: a food blog

Unknown said...

Great job! Funny thing our brain does to words...I read your first statement as "until the last eat is biten." Ummm...makes no sense, huh!? Oh, well...I bet all did get eaten (biten?) because it looks fantastic.

Rebecca of "Ezra Pound Cake" said...

Good job! This one was a doozy.

Rebecca
http://www.ezrapoundcake.com

Deborah said...

Wonderful job on this challenge!