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The Best Flag Cake Recipe. This homemade American Flag Cake is the ultimate 4th of July dessert — and it’s easier than it looks. A moist homemade vanilla cake is topped with fluffy whipped cream cheese frosting piped into beautiful rosettes, then decorated with fresh strawberries, cherries, and blueberries in a stunning patriotic flag design. Whether you’re feeding a crowd at a Fourth of July cookout, Memorial Day barbecue, or any red-white-and-blue celebration, this is the showstopping patriotic cake recipe that looks like a professional made it and tastes even better than it looks. Includes tips, tricks, make-ahead instructions, and everything you need to nail it on the first try.
I had to sneak one more recipe before the 4th of July comes tomorrow! This is the ultimate Flag Cake recipe and what makes it unique and special? It is the FROSTING! I am pretty sure that I could eat an entire bowl of this frosting. It is creamy, silky smooth with just the right amount of sweetness.
What’s the secret? The frosting calls for whipped heavy cream folded into cream cheese, powdered sugar, and a touch of vanilla bean. It is a lighter version of cream cheese frosting and it is a family favorite! I use it on my Chantilly Cake Recipe and it always a hit!
Then, it is decorated with gorgeous summer berries — raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, and cherries. We love a beautiful flag cake!
Whether you’re hosting a Fourth of July BBQ, Memorial Day picnic, or just want something red, white, and blue, this cake is a festive favorite that tastes even better than it looks!
Most flag cake recipes lean on boxed cake mix and store-bought frosting — and while there’s nothing wrong with that in a pinch, a truly homemade version is in a completely different league. The cake itself is soft, fine-crumbed, and buttery in a way that boxed mixes just can’t replicate.
The cream cheese frosting is rich and tangy and whipped to a silky, cloud-like consistency that pipes beautifully and holds its shape in the summer heat far better than a standard buttercream. And the fresh berries — blueberries for the star field, sliced strawberries, raspberries, and fresh cherries for the red stripes — add a burst of real fruit flavor that makes every bite feel fresh and summery.
This is the cake people talk about for the rest of the summer. A homemade American flag cake with piped cream cheese frosting and fresh berries — it looks like a professional made it, but you can absolutely pull this off in your own kitchen. Tender homemade white cake, silky whipped cream cheese frosting, juicy blueberries and strawberries arranged in perfect flag formation. Every tip, trick, and step you need is right here.
Why this flag cake is perfect for 4th of July, Memorial Day and Labor Day:
The American flag cake is one of the few that is genuinely as beautiful as it is delicious. Unlike most holiday-themed desserts that rely on colored frosting and sprinkles for their festive appearance, this cake uses real fruit to create its red and white stripes and blue star field, which means every bite actually tastes like summer. Fresh strawberries and blueberries at their peak ripeness, silky cream cheese frosting, and tender homemade white cake are a combination that is always a hit! It works for Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day. If you make it once, it will become your annual tradition.
If you are looking for more festive 4th of July dessert recipes, check out my Sugar Cookie Flag Fruit Pizza Recipe.
Flag Cake Ingredients:
Start with a homemade moist vanilla cake and top it with a fresh whipped cream cheese frosting and then decorate a flag pattern with fresh fruit and pipe stripes with frosting. This is such a beautiful and festive 4th of July dessert!
VANILLA CAKE:
- Eggs
- Egg Whites
- Buttermilk
- Oil: I suggest using a neutral oil such as canola or vegetable oil.
- Vanilla
- Sugar
- Cake Flour: Lower protein content than all-purpose flour, resulting in a lighter, more tender cake.
- Baking Powder
- Salt
- Unsalted Butter (softened and cut into cubes)
WHIPPED CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
- Heavy Cream
- Cream Cheese
- Powdered Sugar
- Vanilla Bean Paste
FRESH FRUIT:
- Fresh Blueberries or Blackberries ( or both for the stars section)
- Fresh Strawberries or Raspberries (or both for red stripes)
- Optional: Fresh Cherries (may pit and slice in half)
How to make a Homemade Flag Cake with Fresh Berries:
You can be so creative with this cake and customize it just how you like it. I use fresh raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, and cherries…but you can use only raspberries and blueberries if you prefer.
This recipe is also designed to be genuinely achievable. You don’t need professional piping skills, a turntable, or specialty tools. You need a sheet pan, a piping bag fitted with a star or round tip, and a steady hand. The flag design is forgiving by nature — slight imperfections just make it look more handmade. By the time you’re done, you’ll have a cake that photographs beautifully, feeds a crowd, and tastes every bit as good as it looks.
HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE VANILLA CAKE:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a stand mixer or with hand mixer, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
- Beat the butter into the flour mixture, one cube at a time. Continue to beat until it resembles coarse crumbs
- In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla. For extra loft, whip the egg whites in a bowl until soft peaks form. Add 1/2 of the egg-milk mixture and beat the batter is light and fluffy. Add the remaining egg-milk mixture and mix just until combined.
- Lightly spray a 9 x 13 cake pan with non-stick cooking spray. Pour batter into cake pan. Bake for 28-32 minutes. Remove cake from oven when toothpick or cake tester comes out clean. Let cool before removing from pan.
- If you are inverting the cake onto a platter, run a knife along the sides of the cake to help loosen it. Flip the cake onto the serving platter.
HOW TO MAKE FROSTING:
- In a bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form.
- In another bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add powdered sugar and vanilla to the cream cheese, and whip until smooth and fluffy.
- Gently fold whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Chill until ready to use.
HOW TO DECORATE THE FLAG CAKE:
- Once the cake is cool, spread a generous thick layer of frosting over the entire surface and on the sides of the cake as well (if the sides are shown).;
- Fill the upper left section with tightly packed blueberries or blackberries (this is the “stars” field).
- Use raspberries, sliced strawberries or cherries to make red stripes, alternating with frosting swirls (white stripes) using a large star tip.
- Pipe the white swirls in long stripes across the cake. For a fun, swirly look, hold the star tip at a 45° angle and make a soft zigzag motion.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Can I use boxed cake mix instead?
Yes! A vanilla or white cake mix works fine. Follow package directions for a 9×13 cake. Make sure not to overbake a boxed cake mix.
Can I use frozen berries?
Fresh is best! Frozen berries can bleed and get soggy.
Can I pipe rosettes instead of stripes?
Absolutely! Rosettes using a star tip still give a striped effect.
Can I make this ahead of time?
Yes. Bake the cake a day in advance. You can cover it well with plastic wrap and place it in the freezer as well. Frost and decorate the morning of your event for best freshness.
Is this frosting super sweet?
Nope! It’s lightly sweetened and super creamy — great for people who don’t love a super sugary buttercream.
Tips for making a homemade flag cake:
Dry your berries completely. This cannot be overstated. Wet berries bleed — the juice from strawberries and blueberries will seep into your white frosting. After washing, spread berries in a single layer on paper towels and pat them thoroughly dry. Let them air dry for at least 30 minutes before placing them on the frosted cake.
Make the frosting stiff enough to pipe. Cream cheese frosting is naturally softer than buttercream, which can make piping tricky in warm weather. For the stiffest, most pipeable consistency, make sure both your cream cheese and butter are softened but not warm. If your kitchen is hot, chill the frosting for 15 to 20 minutes after mixing before loading your piping bag. You can also increase the powdered sugar by half a cup for extra stiffness, though this will make the frosting noticeably sweeter.
Chill the cake between steps. If at any point your frosting starts to look soft or the piped shapes aren’t holding, slide the whole cake into the refrigerator for 15 minutes. The cold firms everything back up quickly. This is especially important if you’re assembling the cake in a warm kitchen or on a hot summer day.
Use full-fat cream cheese only. Low-fat or fat-free cream cheese contains more water and less fat, which makes for a frosting that is runny, gummy, and impossible to pipe cleanly. Full-fat block cream cheese — not the spreadable kind in a tub — is non-negotiable for a frosting that holds its shape.
How to make this cake ahead of time:
One of the most common questions about flag cake is how far in advance it can be made — especially important for a holiday when you have a dozen other things to prepare.
The cake can be baked up to two days in advance, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, and stored in the freezer or at room temperature. I prefer to freeze the cake ahead of time since it make it easier to frost. They can also be frozen for up to one month — wrap in plastic, then foil, and thaw overnight at room temperature before frosting.
The cream cheese frosting can be made up to three days ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Before using, let it sit at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes and re-whip briefly with a hand mixer to restore its fluffy consistency.
The fully assembled and decorated cake can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours before serving. Add the fresh berries no more than 2 to 4 hours before serving for the freshest appearance and the least risk of berry juice bleeding into the frosting.
Storage:
Store the frosted, decorated cake in the refrigerator. Cover lightly with plastic wrap or store in an airtight cake container.Best enjoyed within 2–3 days.
If making ahead, store the unfrosted cake tightly wrapped at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the freezer, and decorate the day you serve the cake.
I hope you love this 4th of July cake recipe! Enjoy!
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Flag Cake
Ingredients
VANILLA CAKE:
- 3 large Egg Whites (beaten in bowl)
- 2 large Eggs
- 1 cup Buttermilk
- 3 Tablespoons Oil
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 1 1/2 cups Sugar
- 2 1/4 cups Flour
- 2 teaspoons Baking Powder
- 3/4 teaspoon Salt
- 1 cup Butter (cut into cubes)
WHIPPED CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
- 2 cups Heavy Cream
- (2) 8-ounce pkgs. Cream Cheese (softened)
- 2 1/2 cups Powdered Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Bean Paste or Extract
FRESH FRUIT:
- Raspberries
- Strawberries
- Blueberries or Blackberries (or both)
- Cherries (optional)
Instructions
VANILLA CAKE:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a stand mixer or with hand mixer, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Beat the butter into the flour mixture, one cube at a time. Continue to beat until it resembles coarse crumbs.
- In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla. For extra loft, whip the egg whites in a bowl until soft peaks form. Add 1/2 of the egg-milk mixture and beat the batter is light and fluffy. Add the remaining egg-milk mixture and mix just until combined.
- Lightly spray a 9 x 13 cake pan with non-stick cooking spray. Pour batter into cake pan. Bake for 28-32 minutes. Remove cake from oven when toothpick or cake tester comes out clean. Let cool before removing from pan.
- If you are inverting the cake onto a platter, run a knife along the sides of the cake to help loosen it. Flip the cake onto the serving platter.
FROSTING:
- In a bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form .In another bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add powdered sugar and vanilla to the cream cheese, and whip until smooth and fluffy.
- Gently fold whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Chill until ready to use.
HOW TO DECORATE FLAG CAKE:
- Once the cake is cool, spread a generous thick layer of frosting over the entire surface and on the sides of the cake as well (if the sides are shown).
- Fill the upper left section with tightly packed blueberries or blackberries (this is the “stars” field).
- Use raspberries, sliced strawberries or cherries to make red stripes, alternating with frosting swirls (white stripes) using a large star tip.
- Pipe the white swirls in long stripes across the cake. For a fun, swirly look, hold the star tip at a 45° angle and make a soft zigzag motion.
- Keep covered in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Notes
Yes! A vanilla or white cake mix works fine. Follow package directions for a 9×13 cake. Make sure not to overbake a boxed cake mix.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I have been wanting to make this cake for years! So happy to have the recipe! This is going to be fun and delicious.
This cake is so amazing!!! I’m obsessed with the frosting
Thank you for making it Amber!