Hoda Kotb Just Celebrated Her Birthday With A 7-Ingredient Semi-Homemade Cake—Here's The Recipe
Sprinkles pale in comparison when you can Ritz things up like this.
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Although she now calls New York City home so she can co-host NBC’s TODAY and Hoda & Jenna, Hoda Kotb is a Southerner at heart. The broadcast journalist, author, podcast host, and mom was born in Oklahoma, raised in West Virginia, and tells us that New Orleans, where she lived and worked for six years, "is the closest to a hometown I’ve ever felt."
We'd adore her vulnerability, optimism, and interviewing prowess, no matter where Kotb has roots. But we particularly love celebrating her wins and sweet rituals—and mourning alongside her during tough times—since she’s so Southern at her soul.
One recent celebration-worthy occasion was made even sweeter thanks to a surprise delivery from the TODAY culinary team. In honor of Kotb’s 59th birthday, food stylist, chef, and culinary producer Anthony Contrino created a unique layer cake that had us asking ourselves, “Why didn’t we think of that?!"
Probably because the topping is far from expected: Ritz Crackers.
Hoda exclaimed as the cake arrived on the table in front of her chair on the Hoda & Jenna set, “Oh my god, I love a Ritz!"
In addition to Kotb’s favorite brand of crackers wrapping around the exterior of the four-layer cake, there are Ritz crumbles sprinkled on top, as well as four crackers wedged into the top with one sprinkle-coated letter on each, to spell H-O-D-A.
Kotb was so excited to dive in, she asked the behind-the-scenes team for a knife so she could slice a piece to savor and share with Jenna. As Kotb carved into the dessert, she explained her birthday plans.
"My whole family is coming to celebrate. My mom, my sister, my brother, my nieces, my girls [referring to her two daughters, Hope and Haley],” she revealed. “I have this same birthday every year, and I love it. We don’t do anything. We have balloons, we have cake, and we don’t do anything.”
That agenda sounds pretty perfect to us, especially if this birthday cake is part of the festivities. The biggest gift about the salty-sweet treat, besides the buttery Ritz? It starts with a boxed cake mix.
Related: 48 Vintage Cakes From The South That Deserve A Comeback
How To Make Ritz Cracker Cake
If you, too, are feeling inspired to recreate Hoda’s Ritz Cracker Cake, Contrino was kind enough to share the recipe. In the future, we’re already dreaming about making our own variation on the theme, trading salted peanut butter frosting for Controni’s cream cheese frosting. (Peanut butter on Ritz was such a staple during childhood…) Or how about salted milk chocolate frosting or browned butter frosting?
First, we couldn’t resist following Hoda’s cake recipe to the letter; cream cheese and Ritz are a delightful duo, too...
Begin by preheating the oven to 350°F. Grease two 8-inch cake pans with butter and a dusting of flour, shaking out any excess. You’ll want a full 13.7-ounce box of Ritz crackers for the full cake recipe, but start with one sleeve. Crumble the Ritz crackers in that sleeve into small pieces. Psst…You’ll also have extras, so feel free to snack on some as you bake.
Prepare two 15.25-ounce boxes of yellow cake mix according to the package instructions, making each box in a different bowl. Add half of the crumbled crackers to each bowl of cake batter, then use a spatula to fold them in.
Keep that spatula handy to transfer the cake batter from the bowls to the prepared cake pans. Bake both for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick slipped into the center comes out clean.
Remove the pans from the oven, and allow the cakes to cool for 15 minutes. After that, flip the cakes out onto cooling racks to allow them to cool fully. (No one wants the icing landslide that can occur when you try to frost warm cakes!)
As they chill out, mix up the frosting: In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add three 8-ounce blocks of room temperature cream cheese with 3 sticks (3/4 pound) of room temp unsalted butter. Turn the mixer to medium-high, and cream the frosting base until it’s light and fluffy, or for about 5 minutes. Pause the mixer, and use a clean spatula to scrape the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl every so often to ensure the butter and cream cheese blends evenly.
Pause the mixer again, and add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and 2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar. Mix on low until the sugar is fully incorporated, then crank up the speed to medium-high and mix until the frosting is light and fluffy, which should take 3 minutes or so.
All that’s left to do now is assemble the cake! Using a sharp knife, trim the tops to level them out, if they are domed at all, then cut each cake round in half to yield 4 layers.
On a large serving platter or cake stand, add a cake layer, flat-side down. Use an offset spatula to evenly spread 1 cup of frosting on top and around the edges of the layer. Repeat with the other layers, finishing by covering the top and sides of the four-tier cake with the rest of the frosting.
Decorate the sides of the cake with as many whole Ritz crackers as you crave or as can fit, then crumble a few more crackers to sprinkle evenly on top. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before slicing, then dive in.
Related: How To Get Even Cake Layers Every Time, According To A Baker
The salty, buttery crackers perfectly accent the rich, egg yolk-y yellow cake, while the cream cheese frosting ties everything together. Are you hungry as we are now? If so, score Hoda's Ritz Cracker Cake recipe here to make for your next birthday or to sweeten up any day.
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