Rasperry Opera Cake

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Opera is one of the best cakes I have ever made, one that has a huge success at every class I make it. I have tried a lot of other variations, some were delicious, some I wished were never made. This Berry Opera however, belongs to the first kind – delicious, vibrant, fresh! It’s a great mix of vanilla French buttercream, almond sponge cake and a raspberry marmalade that brings everything together perfectly. The decor consists of a crunchy layer of streusel with just a few final touches of fresh raspberries. That is all! It is really all it needs to be honest. In pastry, most of the times, less is more!

The key to this dessert is making each layer thin and yet consistent. The sponge cake has to be well spread and baked to perfection without drying out too much. Then there comes the silkiest buttercream ever made – vanilla French buttercream made with egg yolks and a hot sugar syrup, mixed until thick and fluffy which is then mixed with the most delicious butter. Vanilla is added at the end to bring it all to the next level. But what makes this cake shine is definitely the raspberry marmalade layer which is so vibrant and fresh that it could shine on its own!

This recipe may be far from the classic Opera, but it is delicious and perhaps slightly more refreshing!

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Ingredients

Almond Joconde:

135 g almond flour
45 g white sugar A
225 g whole eggs
45 g all-purpose flour
135 g egg whites
90 g white sugar B
50 g butter (melted)

Lemon syrup:

75 g water
55 g white sugar
Zest from 1 lemon

Raspberry marmalade:

225 g raspberry puree (seedless)
1 g pink pepper (crushed)
55 g glucose syrup
15 g white sugar
5 g pectin NH
5 g gelatin + 20g cold water

Vanilla French buttercream:

80 g egg yolks
150 g white sugar + 55g water
300 g butter (softened)
5 g vanilla extract

Red streusel:

30 g butter (chilled and cubed)
65 g all-purpose flour
20 g powdered sugar
15 g almond flour
Red food coloring

Instructions

Almond Joconde:

Combine the almond flour, white sugar A and eggs in a bowl and mix until double in volume.
Mix the egg whites in another bowl until fluffy then add the sugar B and whip until stiff and shiny.
Fold the meringue into the almond flour base, alternating it with the white flour.
Mix the butter with 2 tablespoons of batter then pour in the large bowl. Mix gently until well combined.
Split the batter into 3 equal portions then spread each portion into a 35x25cm sheet on baking paper.
Bake in the preheated oven at 170C for 8-10 minutes or until slightly golden brown.
Bake the three sheets and allow to cool down.

Lemon syrup:

Boil the sugar and water.
Add the lemon zest and infuse for 5 minutes then strain.
Chill.

Rasoberry marmalade:

Bloom the gelatin in water.
Mix the sugar and pectin.
Combine the puree, pink pepper and glucose in a pot. Warm to 40C then add the pectin mixture.
Cook for 2 minutes then take off the heat and add the gelatin.
Mix well then allow to cool down.

Vanilla French buttercream:

Whip the egg yolks until pale.
In the meantime, make a sugar syrup by boiling the water and sugar. When the syrup reaches 118C, pour it in a steady stream over the egg yolks.
Continue whipping until stiff and fluffy.
Add the butter, all at once, and the vanilla and mix very well until smooth.

Red streusel:

Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until sandy.
Spread in a baking tray lined with parchment paper and bake in the preheated oven at 170C for 12-15 minutes.
Allow to cool down then break into small pieces.

To finish the cake:

Place one sheet of Joconde on a cake board. Brush the sponge cake with lemon syrup.
Spread 1/2 of the buttercream on top then place another sheet of Joconde, followed by a layer of syrup.
Spread the raspberry marmalade on top then arrange the final sheet of Joconde plus syrup. Next one is a layer of vanilla buttercream.
Place in the fridge for 20 minutes then level the sides of the cake and cut it in half. Layer the two halves on top of each other to obtain a taller cake. This step is not compulsory, only do it if you want a taller final cake. Otherwise, skip it and cut the cake to the desired shape.
Top with streusel then place in the fridge for at least 6 hours.
Cut into smaller pieces (12x3cm in my case) and finish with fresh raspberries.

Equipment

Kitchen scale
Mixer
Food processor
Cooking stove
Fridge
Baking oven
Bowls
Spatulas
Offset spatula
Knife

Keyword Buttercream, Cakes, Raspberry

Rasperry Opera Cake