L' Opéra

It's certainly not this Opéra that I'm referring to.

I'm a great dessert lover, I especially love French pastries coz' it's so rich. (that's why I'm so fat!)

My superbly long want to bake baking-list includes Opéra. Yah, as what KZ said "why am I going for classes when I already can bake", but I guess sometimes it's the tips you can get from the chefs in classes. And also I had been looking for a chance to escape from the kids, needed a time for myself. Therefore I'm so thankful that SO-EZ had this class, seeing how che-che enjoyed her baking classes, I felt I deserved one too. (only this time I do not want any of them to look into the glass panel as if I'm an animal in the Zoo - keke!)

Introduction
Opera Cake is a type of French cake. It is made with layers of almond sponge cake (known as Joconde in French) soaked in coffee syrup, layered with ganache and coffee buttercream, and covered in a chocolate glaze. The cake was popularized by the French pâtisserie house Dalloyau.

The class
Ooh.. I was so excited (macam a little kid). There were 8 other ladies in class, I was the only first-timer there. I had loads of fun everything seems very easy to me, not too bad for a novice baker like me who'd follow the recipe to a tee. There are things that I've experimented with my failures before that she did mention / gave tips to the class. Who knows it better than I? I don't mind failure, it's the time I pick up and do better. Yay! But I like the class to get some tips and to get away from the kids. Hey! I do deserve a break, don't I?

As I was layering the cake, I can't help but indulge the taste in my mind. Oohh.........slurp.......

Mummy say "cannot waste food", so I obeyed her and being greedy (not wanting to waste my chocolate ganache and coffee buttercream, I slapped alot of it. Haha! Mine became the tallest cake in the class. Opera cake is meant to be of a certain height - I've broken the records. Ha!)

Top : (L) uncut cake. Umm.... first time making a cake without using vanilla essence.
(R) my completed cake
Bottom : (L) I told you! I finished everything. Wanted to lick the ganache from the bowl. But I'm a taitai wanna-be so must watch my behaviour in public.
(R) The ladies waiting for their cake in the oven, while I snapped photo and cleaned my work area - habit. Good thing I don't have to do the washing up. The cake that was meant for our rumbling stomachs. Ooh! I'm suppose to watch my diet... but what the heck!

Chef dismantling my cake from the tin. My cake's not even. Haha! I believe I can do better!!
Can't wait to go home and present the cake to the kids. Today's 25th - just nice. Can celebrate che-che turning 7 yrs 8 months. I think she should like it .. afterall she always fight with me over my Opera cake in Delifrance.