Biscuit Cake with Dried Apricot and Hazelnut (Plazma torta)

I made this cake twice last month. Once for the brunch that we hosted, and the next time for the birthday party of my girlfriend's daughter. It is very easy to make, no baking involved, it is very tasty and it is proven crowd-pleaser.

Originally, this cake was named "Plazma" after its main ingredient, Plazma (a.k.a. "Lane") biscuit. In the U.S. you can buy it online at Amazon or Euro Food Deals. Alternatively, you can try to make the cake using Petit Beurre or Graham crackers.

In my opinion dried apricots are the best dried fruits ever. Although as a fresh fruit it is not so interesting, as dried it is the best possible ingredient for sweets. The taste of it is a little bit acid, but rich and very aromatic. I combined it with sweetened papaya and that was a very good choice.

First time I covered the cake with whipped cream as in the pictures, and the next time I used cream cheese frosting. The latter is heavier but better for decoration.

You need:

600g ground biscuit "Lane" (Plazma)
226g (2 sticks) butter, melted
120g chopped hazelnut
150g chopped dried apricot (put some on the side for decoration)
50g chopped sweetened papaya
3dl orange juice

for whipped cream frosting:

2 cups whipping cream
4 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

for cream cheese frosting:

170g (1 1/2 stick) of butter, at room temperature
226g (8 oz) cream cheese, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons sour cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar



Steps:

Grind the biscuits in the food processor. Add melted butter through the hole. Then add chopped dried apricot, sweetened papaya and hazelnut. Pulse it for few seconds and finally add orange juice. Mixture should be not too wet and not too dry.

Remove the mixture into the 8-inch spring form pan without the bottom, placed on plate for serving. Gently press the biscuit mixture to form uniformly thick layer. Cover it and move to the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Make whipped cream frosting: In a large bowl mix whipping cream with vanilla extract using hand mixer on high speed. Then add powdered sugar. Mix until the frosting can hold stiff peaks. 

Or make cream cheese frosting: Beat the butter on room temperature (this is very important), cream cheese, sour cream, salt and vanilla extract using hand mixer on medium speed. Then add powdered sugar. Mix until the frosting is smooth and fluffy.

Remove the spring form pan and spread the frosting (whipped or cheese cream) evenly over the top (and sides if you like) of the cake. And, sprinkle the top with reserved chopped dried apricot.

Before you serve it, leave the cake out of the fridge for 30 minutes.