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One of my favorite things about Summer is this easy Funfetti Flag Cake Recipe. It’s a patriotic dessert that is perfect for the 4th of July. It’s full of fresh berries that lay over a cool bed of fluffy frosting to resemble the American flag.
Funfetti Flag Cake Recipe
This American flag cake recipe is one of my favorite Summer dessert recipes! The creative berry topping is so fun to put together for the Fourth of July.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t stop smiling at this 4th of July cake. Not only does it look delicious with the vibrant berries and fluffy frosting, but it always turns out looking amazing!
For my Patriotic flag cake, I used a combination of raspberries and sliced strawberries for the red stripes and blueberries for the stars.
Now, a normal American Flag has 13 red and white stripes but my cake doesn’t… and that’s okay! I think most people get it. Since we’re using berries, there wouldn’t be room for 13 stripes on a 9×13-inch cake.
Ingredients Needed for the cake
- Flour: I always use all-purpose flour
- Baking powder: for leavening
- Salt: since we are using unsalted butter
- Butter: we’ll be melted
- Sugar: I’m using granulated sugar
- Eggs: to bind all of our ingredients together
- Vanilla extract: perfect at bringing all the flavors together
- Buttermilk: you can learn how to make buttermilk
- Sprinkles: rainbow jimmies sprinkles
Now if you want, you can use a cake mix to make this funfetti cake even easier!
Ingredients Needed for the frosting
- Butter: more butter that’s softened at room temperature
- Powdered sugar: a must when making frosting
- Vanilla extract: just a few teaspoons vanilla extract
- Salt: to help enhance the flavors
- Heavy whipping cream: makes a creamy and delicious homemade frosting
- Berries: I’m using blueberries for the stars and strawberries or raspberries for the stripes
How to make a flag cake
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9×13-inch baking pan.
- Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Mix butter and sugar on medium speed in a large bowl using a hand or a stand mixer until smooth. Mix in eggs one at a time, then mix in vanilla.
- Add the buttermilk alternately with the dry ingredients, mixing between each, starting and ending with the buttermilk, and mixing just until the batter comes together.
- Stir in sprinkles.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs sticking to it.
- Cool completely before frosting.
- Make the frosting and give the cake a good layer of white buttercream.
- Top with berries in an American Flag pattern.
Expert Tips
- Also makes 24 cupcakes or two 8-inch rounds
- Store this flag cake loosely covered for up to 2 days
- Don’t have berries? Use food coloring to tint your frosting and use a 1M tip to make a rosette flag.
- Love sprinkles and colored sugars? Use one or the other to decorate the top of this cake, like I decorated my Peanut Butter Flag Dip.
- You can use all raspberries or all strawberries if you prefer.
FAQs
Your cake probably sunk for numerous reasons but the main one being too much baking powder or the cake batter wasn’t mixed well enough.
Place your colored berries in an American Flag pattern over the frosting or use tinted icing. It’s so fun to let your creativity flow with this!
Easy Flag Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2 cups (248g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (226g) unsalted buter , melted
- 1 ½ cups (300g) granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (237ml) buttermilk (see note)
- 1 cup rainbow sprinkles
Frosting:
- 1 cup (227g) unsalted butter , softened
- 4 cups (452g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2-5 tablespoons (30-75ml ) heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup blueberries
- 2 cups strawberries or raspberries or combination
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9×13-inch baking pan.
- Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Mix butter and sugar on medium speed in a large bowl using a hand or a stand mixer until smooth. Mix in eggs one at a time, then mix in vanilla.
- Add the buttermilk alternately with the dry ingredients, mixing between each, starting and ending with the buttermilk, and mixing just until the batter comes together. Stir in sprinkles.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs sticking too it. Cool completely before frosting.
- To make the frosting: beat butter with a hand or a stand mixer until creamy. Slowly add in powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until a crumbly mixture forms. Mix in vanilla and salt, then add 2 tablespoons heavy cream. Mix until smooth, adding more cream until you reach your desired consistency. Stir in sprinkles.
- Frost cake with frosting and top berries in an American flag pattern. Store loosely covered for up to 2 days.
- Also makes 24 cupcakes or two 8-inch rounds.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- To make your own buttermilk, add 1 teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice to a measuring cup then fill with milk to make one cup. Let sit for 5 minutes.
- You can use a box mix for the cake for an even easier recipe – use any flavor cake mix and make it in a 9×13-inch pan.
- Other options for frosting: cream cheese frosting, homemade whipped cream, or use whipped cream frosting or a can of frosting.
- Don’t want to use fruit to top the cake? Use sprinkles!
Recipe Nutrition
Other 4th of July Recipes
Last Updated on June 20, 2023
