This Red, White, and Blue Cake is a perfect dessert for Memorial Day and the Fourth of July that tastes as good as it looks! Layers of red, white, and blue cake are covered with sweet vanilla buttercream and topped with sprinkles for an extra festive touch. It’s the perfect cake for any patriotic celebration!
I love this patriotic spin on a classic layer cake. It takes hardly any extra effort to turn a simple white cake into a seriously impressive 4th of July cake! Cut into the layers of cake, and the vibrant colors are reminiscent of stripes on the U.S. flag. How cool is that?
SAVE THIS PATRIOTIC BIRTHDAY CAKE RECIPE TO YOUR FAVORITE PINTEREST BOARD!
I don’t know about you, but I’ve definitely had some red, white, and blue desserts that looked festive but left something to be desired in the taste department. That’s why I’m happy to tell you this Patriotic Cake is completely delicious. Made from scratch, the cake layers have a fluffy crumb and the perfect vanilla flavor. It tastes even better slathered with the thick, creamy vanilla buttercream frosting!
Ingredients for Red, White, and Blue Cake
For the red, white, and blue cake layers, you will need these ingredients.
- Flour
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Unsalted butter (salted butter will work fine too!)
- Sugar
- Egg whites
- Clear vanilla extract (to ensure a whiter color to the white layer!)
- Buttermilk
- Red and blue food gel coloring
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting Ingredients
- Unsalted butter
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Salt
- Heavy whipping cream
- Red, white, and blue sprinkles (for the top of the cake)
As always, I’ve included a detailed list of ingredients in the printable recipe card below!
How To Make a 4th of July Birthday Cake
This red, white, and blue cake looks stunning, but is much easier to make than it looks! Here’s how I make this cake:
- First, I preheat the oven to 350° and grease three 8 or 9-inch cake pans with butter or shortening, then dust with flour.
- To start the cake batter, in a medium bowl, I whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.
- In a separate large bowl, I cream together the butter and sugar with an electric hand mixer on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy. You can also use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment.
- I add the egg whites and vanilla extract and continue beating on medium speed until mixed.
- Next, I pour in about a third of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and beat on low speed until just combined. Then I add the rest of the dry ingredients along with the buttermilk, and fold them together until barely combined.
- Now I divide the batter evenly between 3 small bowls. A digital scale will make this much easier than just eyeballing it. I add about 1/8 teaspoon (or a drop) of red gel food coloring and blue gel food coloring to two separate bowls of batter, and stir until the colors are well mixed. I leave the third bowl as is.
- Finally, I pour each bowl of batter into the three cake tins. I bake them in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cakes comes out clean. Then I rest the cakes on a wire rack until they reach room temperature.
Buttercream Frosting Instructions
While the cakes are cooling, I make the buttercream frosting.
- In a large bowl, I cream the butter with an electric hand mixer on medium speed for about 3 minutes or until the butter is very smooth.
- I gradually add the powdered sugar and continue mixing with the hand mixer until the frosting is thick and stiff. Then I add the vanilla extract, salt, and heavy whipping cream, and continue beating until everything is mixed.
- Now, I transfer the frosting to a piping bag with a large round tip. I place the blue layer of the cake onto a platter or cake stand, and pipe even circles around the top of the blue layer, then spread it out with a spatula. Then I repeat this step with the white and red cake layers.
- Once I have spread out the frosting on the top red cake layer, I spread a thin layer of frosting on the edges of the cake for a crumb coat. I place the cake in the freezer for 20-30 minutes or until the crumb coat is slightly hard.
- Then I spread a thicker layer of the remaining frosting on the whole thing, and pipe some of the frosting on top around the edge in a piping bag with a large star piping tip. I finish by pressing some sprinkles along the bottom edges of the cake, and pour the rest of the sprinkles on top.
FAQs
How do I store Red, White, and Blue Cake?
Store your finished Patriotic Cake, covered, at room temperature for up to 3 days. For longer storage, store it covered in the refrigerator. It will stay good in the refrigerator for up to one week.
Can I make the cake layers ahead of time?
Yes, you can bake the red, white, and blue cake layers in advance and keep them frozen until you’re ready to assemble the 4th of July dessert.
Wrap the cakes tightly in plastic wrap or freezer bags. Store in the freezer for as long as 3 months. Let thaw before frosting and serving.
More Patriotic Desserts
Try one of these recipes next time you’re celebrating a patriotic holiday:
Cake Recipes
After you’ve devoured every bite of this delicious 4th of July Layer Cake, check out these other cake recipes my readers have loved over the years.
- Citrus Layer Cake
- Cinnamon Roll Layer Cake
- Oreo Cake
- Peanut Butter Upside-Down Banana Cake
- Double Chocolate Coconut Cream-Filled Bundt Cake
If you enjoyed this Red, White, and Blue Cake, let me know how it turned out by leaving a comment or recipe review below!
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Red, White and Blue Cake: A Patriotic Dessert
Ingredients
Cake
- 3 cups all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting cake pans
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 4 egg whites room temperature
- 2 teaspoons clear vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups buttermilk or whole milk
- red and blue food gel coloring 1 drop of each
Buttercream Frosting
- 2 cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 6-8 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup red, white and blue sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease three 8 or 9 inch cake pans with butter or shortening and dust with flour. Set aside.
- Start with making the cake batter. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.
- In a separate large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar with an electric hand mixer on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Add the egg whites and vanilla extract, and continue beating on medium speed until mixed.
- Pour in about a third of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and beat on low speed until just combined.
- Add the rest of the dry ingredients along with the buttermilk, and fold together until barely combined.
- Divide the batter evenly between 3 small bowls. A digital scale will make this much easier than just eyeballing it.
- Add about 1/8 teaspoon (or a drop) of red gel food coloring and blue gel food coloring to two separate bowls of batter, and stir until the colors are well mixed.
- Pour each bowl of batter into the three cake tins. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cakes comes out clean. Rest the cakes on a cooling rack until they reach room temperature.
Buttercream Frosting
- While the cakes are cooling, make the buttercream frosting. In a large bowl, cream the butter with an electric hand mixer on medium speed for about 3 minutes, or until the butter is very smooth.
- Gradually add the powdered sugar, and continue mixing with the hand mixer until the frosting is thick and stiff.
- Add the vanilla extract, salt, and heavy whipping cream, and continue beating until everything is mixed.
- Transfer the frosting to a piping bag with a large round tip. Place the blue layer of the cake onto a platter or cake stand, and pipe even circles around the top of the blue layer. Spread the frosting out with a spatula. Repeat this step with the white and red cake layers.
- Once you have spread out the frosting on the top red cake layer, spread a thin layer of frosting on the edges of the cake. This will be your crumb coat. Place the cake in the freezer for 20-30 minutes or until the crumb coat is slightly hard.
- Spread a thicker layer of frosting on the edges of the cake, and pipe some of the frosting on top around the edge in a piping bag with a large star piping tip.
- Press some sprinkles along the bottom edges of the cake, and pour the rest of the sprinkles on top.
- Serve at room temperature.
Nutrition
This post was originally published May 20, 2022. It has been updated in format on May 15, 2026.
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