A from-scratch recipe for Flag Cake (no box mix!) – a rich vanilla sheet cake topped with cream cheese frosting and fresh fruit. If you’re looking for a red, white, and blue patriotic dessert, then this is a 4th of July must!

Growing up, our mom routinely made the iconic flag cake for our 4th of July picnics. We're sure you’ve seen a rendition of it at some point – a yellow or white cake (usually from a box mix), baked in a 9×13-inch pan, covered in Cool Whip, with strategically-placed blueberries and strawberries to represent the American flag. It was a staple at all of those summer parties, and we looked forward to it every year.

When we took it upon myself to make our own, we wanted to make it from scratch. Mission accomplished!

It goes without saying that this cake is heads and tails better than the version that was churned out in countless kitchens during the 1990’s. Not that there’s anything wrong with a box cake and Cool Whip – we've always been an advocate of having some straightforward recipes in your back pocket for those time crunches – but there’s no denying that a rich, buttery cake topped with cream cheese frosting takes the cake. (we know, we know, the pun.) You could slather cream cheese frosting on just about anything and we would devour it with gusto.

The cake is made in a half-sheet pan, which means that there is more than enough for everyone at your 4th of July festivities. The decorating takes a little bit longer, but we think the final look is well worth the extra effort. While we used raspberries, if you prefer strawberries, you could certainly use those. Feel free to decorate the stars on the blueberries any which way; since we had the space, we went with the colonial flag, but do it up however you’d like!

The ever-popular flag cake is an absolute patriotic dessert show-stopper for the 4th of July. Making this from-scratch butter cake with cream cheese frosting is a fabulous decision :)

Yield: 24 servings
Prep: 1 hour
Cook: 30 minutes
Total: 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients

For the Cake:

3 cups ( 375 g ) all-purpose flour
⅓ cup ( 42.67 g ) cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup ( 227 g ) + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 cups ( 600 g ) granulated sugar
6 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup ( 230 ml ) sour cream, at room temperature
1½ teaspoons ( 1.5 teaspoons ) vanilla extract

For the Frosting:

2 cups ( 454 g ) unsalted butter, at room temperature
24 ounces ( 680.39 g ) cream cheese, at room temperature
4 cups ( 480 g ) powdered sugar
1½ teaspoons ( 1.5 teaspoons ) vanilla extract

For the Decorating:

24 ounces ( 680.39 g ) raspberries
16 ounces ( 453.59 g ) blueberries

Method

Make the Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 13x18-inch half sheet pan; set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt; set aside.
Cream together the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to medium and add the eggs, two at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl between additions.
Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the sour cream and vanilla extract, mixing until just combined. Give the batter a stir with a rubber spatula.
Keeping the mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing until the ingredients are just combined. Fold the batter with a rubber spatula to ensure all of the flour has been incorporated.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread into an even layer. Bake until golden brown and a thin knife inserted into the center comes out clean, 20 to 30 minutes. Place the pan on a wire rack and cool completely before decorating.
Make the Frosting: Cream together the butter and cream cheese on medium-high speed until completely smooth, about 3 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to medium-low and gradually add the powdered sugar. Once all of the sugar has been added and is incorporated, add the vanilla extract and increase the mixer speed to medium and beat until completely combined, about 1 minute.
Decorate the Cake: Take about three-quarters of the frosting and spread in an even layer over the top of the cake. Using a toothpick, lightly draw a square in the upper lefthand corner of the cake. Fill in the square with blueberries. Place two rows of raspberries across the top of the cake to make a red stripe. Place the rest of the frosting into a decorating bag with a large tip and pipe two rows of frosting below the raspberries. Continue alternating rows of raspberries and frosting until you get to the bottom of the cake. Pipe stars onto the blueberries in whatever design you'd like.
The cake can be kept at room temperature if it's cool and air conditioned; otherwise leftovers should be stored in the refrigerator, covered in plastic wrap. The cake will keep for up to 3 days, but is best served within a day of making and decorating it.

Notes

(Recipe from Ina Garten )

Flag Cake Recipe (From Scratch!)