Mozaik Pasta (Chocolate Biscuit Cake)
The no-bake chocolate biscuit log every Turkish household grew up with: crushed petit beurre biscuits folded into a rich cocoa mixture, chilled and sliced into a mosaic pattern.
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Ingredients
400g petit beurre (potibor) biscuits, roughly broken
200g unsalted butter
150g powdered sugar
4 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
100g dark chocolate, chopped
150ml whole milk, at room temperature
1 sachet (5g) vanilla sugar
80g walnut kernels, roughly chopped
50g roasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped (optional)
3 tbsp desiccated coconut, for coating (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Break the biscuits by hand into rough, thumbnail-sized pieces. Do not crush them to crumbs; the chunky pieces create the mosaic effect. Set aside in a large bowl with the chopped walnuts and hazelnuts.
- 2
In a saucepan over low heat, melt the butter with the dark chocolate, stirring constantly. Take it off the heat as soon as everything is smooth.
- 3
Whisk in the powdered sugar, cocoa powder and vanilla sugar, then gradually stir in the milk until you have a thick, glossy chocolate sauce. Let it cool for 5 minutes so it does not turn the biscuits soggy.
- 4
Pour the chocolate mixture over the biscuits and nuts and fold gently with a spatula until every piece is coated but the chunks stay intact.
- 5
Lay a large sheet of cling film on the counter. Tip the mixture onto it and shape into a tight log about 25cm long, twisting the ends like a sweet wrapper. Roll in desiccated coconut first if using.
- 6
Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight, until completely firm.
- 7
Unwrap, slice into 1.5cm rounds with a sharp knife and serve chilled with Turkish coffee or black tea. Keeps up to 5 days in the fridge.
Mozaik pasta is Turkey's answer to the fridge cake, and it may be the single most nostalgic dessert in the Turkish repertoire. Broken petit beurre biscuits are stirred through a glossy chocolate paste, rolled into a log, and chilled until firm. When you slice it, the pale biscuit pieces sit in the dark chocolate like tiles in a mosaic, which is exactly how it got its name.
Because there is no oven involved, it is a brilliant recipe for hot days, for kids who want to help in the kitchen, or for anyone in the UK without much baking kit. The only rule that matters: do not pulverise the biscuits. You want rough, thumbnail-sized chunks so the mosaic pattern shows clearly in every slice.
All the building blocks, from Ulker petit beurre biscuits to Turkish butter, walnuts and dark chocolate, are available from Turkish Online Market with delivery across the UK. Serve thin slices with a small cup of Turkish coffee and it disappears fast.
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