American Flag Cake

Flag Cake in baking pan ready for you 4th of July

Celebrate the 4th of July with this beautiful patriotic dessert, a delicious finale to your family cookout. The irresistibly moist vanilla cake is topped with creamy vanilla frosting, fresh blueberries, and strawberries for a refreshing summer treat.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 20

Total Time 40

Servings

Calories 845kcal

Author Imma

Ingredients

Vanilla Cake

½ cup (113g) unsalted butter softened at room temperature
½ cup (100ml) canola oil (or any neutral-flavored cooking oil)
1½ cups (300g) sugar
½ cup (113g) sour cream
4 large eggs at room temperature
2½ cups (300g) all-purpose flour
1¼ teaspoon (5g) baking powder
½ teaspoon (3g) salt
½ cup (113g) milk
2 teaspoons (10ml) vanilla extract

Vanilla Frosting

1½ cups (340g) butter
5-6 cups (560-680g) powdered sugar
2 teaspoons (10ml) vanilla extract
2-3 tablespoons (30-45ml) milk
2-3 cups (300-500g) strawberries
1 cup (150-200g) blueberries

Instructions

The Cake

Preheat the oven to 350℉ (180℃). Grease a quarter-sheet cake pan (9"x13"x2") generously with baking spray and set aside.
Cream the butter, oil, and sugar with a hand mixer for about 3 minutes. Then add sour cream and continue mixing until it is fluffy and starts to look white (about 2 minutes). A stand mixer will also work.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition. Then add the flour, baking powder, and salt, and mix until combined.
Add the milk and vanilla extract. Continue mixing, making sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl so everything gets mixed in.
Pour the batter into the rectangular sheet pan, shake gently back and forth to ensure the batter is evenly distributed, and bake at 350℉ (177℃) for 18-20 minutes or until a tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
Gently remove the cake from the pan, transfer it to a wire rack, and let it cool completely before frosting. You could also opt to leave it in the pan, then frost and decorate it for easier serving.

Frosting

While the cake cools, cream the butter in a medium bowl, then sift in powdered sugar a little at a time until it has been incorporated.
Mix in the vanilla extract, then slowly add milk just until it reaches a spreadable consistency. Adjust with more powdered sugar if it's too thin or more milk if too thick.
Wash and dry your fruit well using a paper towel—slice strawberries to the desired shape.
Spread the frosting evenly over the cooled cake. Arrange blueberries in rows in the top left corner to form the star portion of the flag. Line the strawberry slices in 5 rows to create the stripes. Pipe the remaining frosting between the rows of strawberries to decorate the white stripes as desired. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Notes

I used all-purpose flour for convenience, but you could use the same amount of cake flour instead.
Feel free to swap out the strawberries with raspberries or cherries for the red stripes.
Make sure to dry the fruit before decorating to avoid color bleeding.
Please keep in mind that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.

Nutrition