Opera Cake

Ingredients for Almond Sponge:

150 gm. ground almond
130 gm. icing sugar - sift
50 gm. cake flour
6 egg yolks
45 gm. melted butter
5 egg white
30 gm. sugar

Ingredients for butter cream:

125 gm. Butter
150 gm. Margarine
40 gm. Icing sugar - stir in 1 Tbsp. of hot water to dissolve the icing sugar
1/2 Tbsp. Kahlua
1 tsp. Instant custard

Ganache:

200 gm. cooking chocolate
120 gm. Dairy whip cream
10 gm. butter

Method:

(1) Mix ground almond and icing sugar together.
(2) Add in egg yolks, flour and melted butter and stir till well mixed.
(3) Whisk egg white with 30 gm. sugar until soft peak.
(4) Fold the beaten egg white into the egg yolk mixture.
(5) Divide the batter into 3 portions. Spread the batter into 9" square tray (3 trays altogether). You can also bake in one 9" sq tray and slice horizontally into 3 to 4 layers , your preference.
(6) Bake the sponge for about 20 - 25 mins at 175C. or till cooked.
(7) Remove from oven and leave to cool.
(8) For butter cream: beat butter and margarine together until white and creamy.
(9) Add in icing sugar mixture and beat till creamy.
(10) Mix in kahlua coffee liquer and instant custard powder.
(11) For Ganache: Mix all the ingredients and microwave or double boil cream then add in chopped chocolate and butter and stir till glossy.

To assemble:

(1) Take a layer of almond sponge cake. Spread some coffee butter cream on top and then pour 1/3 of the ganache on top and spread evenly.
(2) Repeat the method (1) until the almond sponge cake is used up.
(3) Leave in the fridge for the chocolate and butter cream to set.
(4) Pipe some wordings "OPERA" on top of the cake and serve.