The gateau de l’Opera Cake originates from the patisseries of Paris. It is a stunning Almond Jaconde cake soaked with coffee syrup and layered with coffee buttercream, chocolate ganache, and chocolate glaze. Traditional Opera Cake is decorated with its name written in glaze or royal icing across the top and finished with a piece of shimmering edible gold leaf. For my version I decorated each individual piece so that each guest receives an elegant little masterpiece. Each layer of this cake is easy to make but you’ll want to plan ahead because it takes time to make all the components, along with assembling the layers, along with refrigeration time. Each of the components can be made up to 1 week ahead of time, except for the Almond Jaconde which should be made at the most 1 day before. I recommend making the Chocolate Glaze and Royal Icing just before ready to use. I make this cake over a two day period. On day one I make the Almond Jaconde, wrap well in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. I also make the Coffee Syrup on day one and refrigerate, along with chopping all the chocolate for the ganache and glaze. On day 2 I make the ganache and buttercream and assemble the cake. Then the completed cake goes into the refrigerator at least one hour before making the glaze to glaze the top of the cake, then refrigerating another hour before cutting, completing the final decorations, and serving. Whew!!! Cake completed and totally worth the effort.