Hedgehog "Cake

Ingredients

• 2  chocolate cookie white chunk
• 18  chocolate chip cookie mix divided (2 inch)
• 4  apricots dried
• 1  jelly bean 
• 5 inches shoestring licorice 
• 7 oz bars swiss milk chocolate nougat bar 
• 8 oz philadelphia neufchatel cheese softened
• 4 oz baker's semi-sweet chocolate melted (6 oz.)
• 2 Tbsp sugar 
• 1.5 cups cool whip lite whipped topping thawed

Equipment

• bowl
• hand mixer

Directions

1. Beat Neufchatel cheese in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until creamy.
2. Add melted chocolate and sugar; mix well. Gently stir in whipped topping.
3. Remove 1 Tbsp. of the Neufchatel cheese mixture for later use; spread small amount of the remaining cream cheese mixture between each of 16 of the cookies to form two logs of 8 cookies each.
4. Place logs, side-by-side, on serving platter for the "hedgehog's body."
5. Add remaining 2 cookies to one end for the "face" as shown in photo.
6. Spread face and body with remaining Neufchatel ixture until completely covered.
7. Cut each apricot to resemble a foot with claws; attach to the body with the reserved Neufchatel cheese mixture. Press chocolate triangles into the "body" to resemble quills. Decorate with white chocolate chips for the "eyes," jelly bean for the "nose" and licorice for the "whiskers." Store in refrigerator.