This red, white, and blue cake is the perfect dessert for your Fourth of July celebration! The best part is the surprise flag pattern you'll find hidden inside. This is a cake that requires some advance preparation, but it's totally worth it—your guests will be amazed!
Happy Flag Day, dear Sweet Precision readers! Usually, Flag Day is one of those holidays that sneaks up on me. I don't realize it's the day until I see small flags lining the sides of residential streets. This year, I actually noticed the holiday coming up when I looked at my calendar last week. Since Matthew has been busy teaching his class this summer, I've had a little more time on my hands during the weekends. I decided to put that time to good use—in the kitchen—this past Saturday!
Why you'll love this recipe
So let's chat a little bit about this red, white, and blue cake recipe. This recipe takes some serious planning and dedicated time in the kitchen to pull off. The end result is more than worth all the time you'll spend leveling and assembling your cake… I promise! This cake has been on my baking "to-do" list for quite a while, but I knew it would be a big undertaking—and it WAS!
However, if you want a show-stopper cake, it simply doesn't get any better than this. There are several versions of this recipe floating around on the internet. I chose to go with one posted on the All Recipes website. Below, I've shared the recipe with a few tips of my own.
Key ingredients and why we use them
Box Cake Mix: I use boxed cake mix here because this recipe is already so involved. You could swap it out with your favorite vanilla cake if you really don't like the taste of cake from a box.
Gel Food Coloring: Gel food coloring will help you get the brightest and most vivid colors on your cake. I recommend using this type of food coloring.
Canned Frosting: Again, this is a step to make things a little easier for you. I like to use basic fluffy canned frosting. I don't like the cream cheese because it's not quite as stiff as the regular and is harder to spread.
Heather's helpful hints
One of the keys to successfully executing this cake is ensuring that your cake layers are level. You can accomplish this with a serrated knife or with a cake leveler. Once your cakes have come out of the oven and cooled, use your knife to remove the dome and you will have flat layers to work with! I also found that it was helpful to freeze my cake layers overnight before assembling everything.
Freezing your cake layers makes them easier to work with for the final assembly. When frosting your cake, you might also find it helpful to do a crumb coat first. This is a light layer of frosting that will lock in all the crumbs so they don't appear when you do your final icing. There are great videos online that cover all of these topics!
Other cake recipes you'll enjoy
If you're in the mood for another cake recipe, check out some of our reader favorites below!
Recipe
Red, White, and Blue Cake
Equipment
- 4 8-inch round cake pan
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- 3 boxes white cake mix 15.25 ounces each
- 9 egg whites
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 3 ¾ cups milk
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract clear
- 2 tablespoons red gel food coloring
- 1 tablespoon blue gel food coloring
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- 10 cups fluffy white frosting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and line 4 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
- Combine white cake mix, egg whites, vegetable oil, milk, and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl. Beat for 30 seconds using an electric mixer on low speed. Increase mixer speed to medium and beat for 2 more minutes. The batter will still be slightly lumpy.
- To make the red cakes, measure half the batter into a separate bowl and whisk in red food coloring. Evenly transfer the red batter into 2 of the 8-inch prepared cake pans; smooth tops of batter with a spatula. Transfer half of the remaining uncolored batter into a 3rd prepared cake pan; smooth top as before. This will be the white cake portion.
- Add blue food coloring to the remaining uncolored batter in the large mixing bowl; fold 1 cup white chocolate chips into blue batter until combined. Transfer batter to remaining prepared 8-inch cake pan; smooth top of batter with a spatula.
- Bake all 4 cakes in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Remove the cakes from oven and place onto cooling racks until cooled completely.
- Run a knife around edge of each cooled cake. Invert cakes, remove pans, and peel off parchment paper. Use a sharp knife to trim tops of cakes flat and even.
- Cut both of the red cake layers and the white cake layer in half horizontally. You will have 4 thin red cake layers and 2 thin white cake layers.
- Place a 4-inch round stencil on top of 1 thin red cake layer; cut out a 4-inch red cake round. Repeat, placing stencil on 1 thin white cake layer to make 1 4-inch white cake round. Center the 4-inch round stencil on the blue cake; cut out and remove center portion covered by the stencil to make a blue cake ring.
- To assemble the cake, you will need 2 thin 8-inch red cake layers, 1 thin 8-inch white cake layer, 1 4-inch thin red cake circle, 1 4-inch thin white cake circle, and 1 blue 8-inch cake ring. Reserve the leftover thin red cake layer and other cake pieces for making crumbs for decorating.
- To assemble cake, place 1 8-inch thin red cake layer on a cake pan and frost the top generously with white frosting. Place the thin 8-inch white cake layer on top of the red one, and frost the top. Place remaining 8-inch thin red cake layer atop the white one. Frost the red layer.
- Place the blue ring cake on top of the 2nd red cake layer and carefully frost the inside of the blue cake ring. Gently fit the 4-inch white cake layer into the blue cake ring. Frost the top of the 4-inch white center. Place the 4-inch red cake layer on top of the white one. Gently press small cake circles flush with the top of the blue ring.
- Frost the entire outside of the cake generously with the remaining frosting. To serve, cut cake into wedges. The inside of the cake will reveal its layers of red and white stripes and blue field with white chocolate chip stars in every slice.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?! First, let me say THANK YOU for giving it a try!
Please leave us a rating and feedback in the comments section at the bottom of this post. I always love to hear your thoughts and ideas on what went well — and didn't — with a recipe!
Happy Baking!
Heather
Victoria
I love, love, love this cute cake! I did one of these last year for the 4th of July. It was such a hit with the family! The recipe I found had blueberries in the blue layer and strawberries in the red layer. It was quite delicious but I think I like the way your blue layer came out and I'll do my next flag cake with the food coloring and this recipe that you've shared here. Lovely cake!
Heather @ Sweet Precision
I think I saw the same recipe that you used Victoria! I remember reading about blueberries and strawberries and wondering if they might add a nice flavor to the cake? I ended up just taking the easy route and using food coloring. It's such an involved cake to begin with, I figured it was okay to take a shortcut! ;) Glad to hear yours was a hit as well. I think the big reveal of actually cutting into the cake is priceless :)
Victoria
Yes, it truly is a very involved project! :) and really fun to cut than first piece and watch the excitement!
Nikki
Heather!! This is amazing. My daughter’s birthday is the 4th of July, saving this for sure!!!!
Heather
Hi Nikki! I love the idea of this cake for your daughter's birthday! It will be such a fun surprise cutting into the middle. This cake always is a showstopper... I love it! Let me know how it turns out this summer—I'd love to hear back from you!
tableofcolors
What a fun recipe and beautiful cake!
Heather @ Sweet Precision
Thank you! It certainly was an adventure making it ;)
Sherri
Oh Heather, this cake is absolutely amazing! But do you know, I cannot get white cake here in the UK? My daughter who buys American food items online sometimes - expensively! - says she also can't find it. And we've tried, believe me! Your photos are stunning, love them! On the day when we Brits are voting whether to stay in or leave the European Union, a massively important turning point for our country, I wonder if I should be making my own red, white and blue cake! :-) <3
Heather @ Sweet Precision
What a bummer Sherri, I had no idea it could be difficult to find white cake mix! There's usually only one brand that carries it in our grocery store. I think yellow cake mix is the most popular here, as there are always several different options. And YES, what a big day it is for your country! Even the "Brexit" is making headline news here in the US. I was watching CNN this morning at the gym and that was the lead story for about 30 minutes. I found it fascinating to listen to the analysts talking about everything.
Sherri
I know...can you believe how hard it is to get white cake? Crazy!! I remember my daughter's favourite was rainbox cake...I think that's what it's called! Brexit...oh Heather, what disarray our country is in right now. My heart is heavy with it all. Those analysts are still going strong...on both sides. And now with some saying they regret their 'leave' vote...and others pointing fingers and accusations of being misinformed and you can well imagine. It's not pretty...I just hope my Britain can be Great again... But at least the sun shone today! I hope you have a lovely day Heather...knock a few punches for me at the gym will you?!! ;-) xxxx
This Cake is Desi
Heather you are so amazing, this looks so professional omg. I'm a fan! Great job girl.
Heather @ Sweet Precision
Thank you! xoxo
Lynz Real Cooking
Wow beautiful!
Heather @ Sweet Precision
Thank you Lynn! :)
Lynz Real Cooking
most welcome!
Antonia
This is awesome Heather! Great for the 4th too. You really did a fantastic job on this cake! I bet Matthew was impressed. Have a wonderful weekend :D
Heather @ Sweet Precision
We froze half of it to eat on the Fourth of July! I'll admit that I've been tempted to take it back out and just eat it now ;) Hope you have a lovely weekend too Antonia!
Antonia
That's a great idea! I bet it will be hard not to take out early ;) Thank you!
Just Add Attitude
Happy Flag Day Heather - although I think I am late with that wish. I am in awe of your baking skills and your patience - the cake looks amazing. Well done.
Heather @ Sweet Precision
Thank you so much B! Patience is something that is challenging at times but that's one of the reasons that I really like baking. You get a chance to slow things down a little bit. Hope you're having a lovely week :)
CakePants
Oh wow, Heather, this looks fantastic!! You did a great job - this looks just like the flag cakes I've seen on Pinterest! I have to admit that I often forget about Flag Day, but at least this cake will be just as appropriate for the Fourth of July.
Heather @ Sweet Precision
Thanks Mara :) We totally froze half of the cake and are planning to break it out for the Fourth of July! Hope you're having a good week and are enjoying the warm weather!
Jess
Oh my goodness Heather! I've only seen flag cakes successfully pulled off in magazines; now I actually KNOW someone who did it, and did it well. This looks wonderful :-)
Heather @ Sweet Precision
Thanks Jess! I had looked at ones in magazines for so many years! I finally decided to give it a try. I'll admit my expectations were somewhat low so I was excited when it turned out okay!
Matthew
Even tastier than it looks
Heather @ Sweet Precision
Those slices from the freezer are calling your name ;)
apuginthekitchen
Love that cake Heather, beautifully done!!
Heather @ Sweet Precision
Thanks Suzanne! It was quite the project! :)