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This beautiful red, white, and blue American flag cake is the perfect dessert for any Memorial Day or 4th of July gathering.
The flag cake starts off with a from scratch vanilla sheet cake recipe. Then, by using white icing, raspberries, and blueberries, the pattern and design of an American flag is created. It makes this the perfect dessert for patriotic holidays like Memorial Day or Fourth of July.
American Flag Cake
I love making this for a patriotic holiday because it’s just light enough for a potluck or hot summer day, and it’s so fitting for the occasion.
The taste is great, too. The flavors are perfectly balanced between the vanilla creaminess of the cake mix and icing. The fruit toppings add a tart and fruity accent. They are the perfect complement to one another!
We love this creamy, traditional cake recipe. But, you can substitute your favorite cake recipe in place or use a box cake mix if you prefer.
Ingredients You Need to Make an American Flag Cake:
For the cake:
- 18 tablespoons (2-1/4 sticks) of unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3 cups of sugar
- 6 extra large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup of sour cream, at room temperature
- 1-1/2 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract
- 3 cups of all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon of kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda
For the icing:
- 1 pound (4 sticks) of unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1-1/2 pounds of cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 pound of confectioners sugar, sifted
- 1-1/2 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract
For assembling the flag:
- 2 half-pints of blueberries
- 3 half-pints of raspberries
How to Make An American Flag Cake
First, heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Then, prepare your 18 x 12 x 1-1/2 inch sheet pan by spreading a very thin coat of butter on the inside of the pan and sprinkling it with flour.
Next, combine the butter and sugar in a bowl. Using an electric mixer cream them together. I like to use my mixer that has the paddle attachment and I set it to high speed. Mix these together until they are light and fluffy.
Reduce the mixer to medium speed and add in the eggs 2 at a time. Then, add the sour cream and vanilla. Make sure to scrape the sides and stir all of these ingredients together until you have a smooth texture.
Sift together the flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking soda in a bowl. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the butter until the mixture is just combined. Pour the mixture into your prepared pan from before.
Smooth out the top with a spatula, then bake in the center of the oven for about 20-30 minute, or until a toothpick test comes out clean. Then, cool to room temperature.
To make the icing, combine the butter, cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl. Using an electric mixer, (again, I like to use the paddle attachment) mix until the icing mixture turns smooth.
How to Decorate
To assemble to cake, start by spreading about three fourths of the icing on the top of the cooled sheet cake.
Outline the flag on the top of the cake with a toothpick. Fill in the upper left corner with blueberries.
Place two rows of raspberries across the top of the cake like a red stripe. Put the remaining icing in a pastry bag fitted with a star tip and pipe two rows of white stripes below the raspberries. Alternate rows of raspberries and icing until the flag is completed.
Lastly, pop the stars on the top of the blueberries.
TIP: It’s important to make sure that your fruit is completely dry when you put it on the cake, otherwise it can cause the icing to get soggy and it will ruin the look of your beautiful cake!
This American flag cake is bound to blow everyone away at your next gathering. It makes the perfect centerpiece and dessert all in one.
American Flag Cake
Ingredients
Cake Batter:
- 2½ cups Flour
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 ¾ Sugar
- 3 Eggs
- ½ cup Sour Cream
- ¾ cup Butter
- ¼ cup Vegetable Oil
- 1 tbsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup Buttermilk
Almond Cream Cheese Icing:
- 2½ cups Powdered Sugar
- 1 cup Butter
- ½ cup Cream Cheese softened
- 1 tsp Almond Extract
- 2 tbsp Heavy Cream
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12 by 17 inch cake pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Cream butter and sugar with paddle attachment in a stand mixer for 4-5 minutes on medium high speed until light and fluffy!
- While butter and sugar are creaming, whisk together dry ingredients.
- Beat in eggs one at a time. Scrape sides of bowl after each addition then add vanilla.
- Add sour cream and vegetable oil and mix until combined.
- Alternate dry ingredients with buttermilk ⅓ at a time, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Do not over mix!
- Spread batter into pan and bake for 15- 20 minutes. Check at 15 minutes. Allow to cool while you slice strawberries in half and prepare icing.
- For icing, mix cream cheese and butter on medium high speed for 1 minute with whisk attachment.
- Add sugar all at once turn mixer on low to combine. Once combined add cream, salt and almond extract mix on medium high speed for 4-5 minutes. Ice cake and decorate with strawberries and blueberries. Use a star icing tip to pipe stars in between blueberries. Pipe a shell border around cake to finish edges if you wish!
I love this idea, I can’t wait to make it for Memorial Day and 4th of July!