Sour cream Apricot Cheesecake

Heat oven to 350 deg. and grease and lightly flour a 10-inch Bundt or other decorate tube pan. In a medium size bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt; stir in 3/4 C. chopped apricots until lightly coated with flour mixtures. Set aside. In large bowl, electric mixer on medium, beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy; crumble in almond paste and beat until blended. Add sour cream and eggs and beat until blended; stir in apricot preserves. With mixer on very low speed, add flour mixture to sour cream mixture and beat just until blended--do not overmix. Spoon batter into prepared pan and bake 50 to 60 minutes or until cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on wire rack 10 minutes and turn cake out onto serving plate. Cool completely. Prepare Apricot Glaze and set aside. Just before serving, decorate cake: Stir 1 tsp of Glaze into remaining T. of chopped apricots; set aside. Spread remaining glaze over top of cake, allowing it to run down the sides. Make "flowers" on top of cake by clustering sliced almonds and placing a glazed chopped apricot in the center of each "flower." Apricot Glaze: In small bowl, stir together 1/2 C. powdered sugar, 1/4 C. apricot preserves, and 1/4 tsp. water until sugar dissolves.