This American Flag Birthday Cake recipe is the easiest way to make a festive-looking dessert. This cake is also perfect for Memorial Day and the 4th of July. It is made with a simple homemade sheet cake, (vegan) whipped cream, and fresh berries. Wow, your friends and family with this party cake!
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💡 The recipe in a nutshell
- Vegan (eggless and dairy-free)
- Can be made gluten-free (read recipe notes)
- Easy to make
- Festive, decorative and fun!
🎂 What is a flag cake?
A flag cake is typically a soft yellow sheet cake topped with whipped cream or frosting. It is then decorated to resemble a flag by using ingredients such as fresh fruit and berries, colored icing and more!
This flag cake recipe resembles the American flag and is the perfect dessert for themed birthday parties and patriotic holidays.
📋 Ingredients
To make the vegan sheet cake from scratch you will need:
- Plant milk, such as almond or soy
- Apple Cider Vinegar
- Applesauce
- Vegetable oil
- Cane sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Almond extract
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
To create the US flag onto the cake you will need:
- Whipped Cream (or frosting), you can use a vegan store-bought variety or make your own with this recipe
- Strawberries
- Blueberries
🇺🇸 How do I make a flag birthday cake?
Making a flag cake is super simple! All you need is your favorite sheet cake, (vegan) whipped cream, or frosting, such as cream cheese frosting and fruit to decorate. To make the sheet cake you can use my recipe below. Or as an alternative, a boxed cake or a pre-made unfrosted one from the store will work too.
To resemble the red in the American flag use fresh strawberries. For the blue rectangle use fresh blueberries. Putting them next to each other will also form small star shapes in between them. Just like you see in the images! You can also find a how-to video in the recipe card below.
🥣 Storage
To store the unfrosted sheet cake: Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and secure the top, sides, and bottom. Then place the wrapped cake in a plastic zip-log bag or air-tight container and store it on the kitchen counter at room temperature for up to five days. If you need to keep unfrosted layers longer than that, freeze them.
Store frosted cake covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. Add berries shortly before serving. If added already the toppings keep fresh for up to 2 days. Check strawberry slices before serving.
❄️ How to freeze
Wrap the unfrosted cake tightly in plastic wrap and secure the top, sides, and bottom. Place in a zip-log bag or an air-tight freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 6 months.
Place frosted cake in an air-tight freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months.
📖 Recipe
American Flag Birthday Cake
Equipment
- mixing bowl, electric mixer (or whisk), 9x13 -inch cake pan (23x33cm), spatula, knife and cutting board to slice strawberries
Ingredients
Sheet Cake
- 185 ml plant milk, such as almond or soy (6.2 fl oz)
- 155 ml filtered water (5.2 fl oz)
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon applesauce
- 75 ml vegetable oil (2.5 fl oz)
- 200 g cane sugar (7 oz)
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 300 g all-purpose flour* (10.5 oz)
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- a pinch of salt
Topping
- 450 g vegan whipped cream, lightly sweetened (15.8 oz)
- 300 g fresh strawberries (10.5 oz)
- 100 g fresh blueberries (3.5 oz)
Instructions
Making sheet cake from scratch
- Preheat the oven to 180°C / 355°F and lightly grease, spray or line a 13 by 9-inch cake pan with parchment.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the plant milk and vinegar. Let sit for 1 minute to curdle. Now add the applesauce, oil, sugar, extracts, and water. Whisk to combine. Then add dry ingredients. Mix with an electric mixer (or whisk) until a smooth batter forms. Do not overmix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean and the cake is just slightly golden on top.
Assembling the cake
- Prepare vegan whipped cream if making at home, and wash berries. Slice strawberries shortly before assembling.
- Once the cake has cooled completely, frost the cake, using as much whipped cream as you desire. Then, carefully place the blueberries and sliced strawberries on the cake, making a flag design. The strawberries will resemble the red stripes, the blueberries will resemble the blue rectangle in the upper left corner of the flag. See the pictures above, or watch the video below.
- Serve immediately and enjoy! Do not keep the cake out in the heat or in the sun for too long. Otherwise, the whipped cream may melt and the berries could spoil. Store any extra cake in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Video
Notes
PS: Don't forget to rate this recipe and leave a comment on your experience - this helps improve my recipes and serves you with the best instructions, tips, and substitution ideas. Plus, I love hearing about your takes on my recipes! Tag me on Instagram @thesimplesprinkle to show me your pictures.
Very Delicious
love how cute this cake is! it turned out so delicious as well!
Such a fun cake!
Such a lovely idea and great presentation!
So delicious and perfect for summer, we all loved it! I'll be making this every Fourth of July!
cute and so delicious
How creative! And delicious too 🙂
Thanks for this awesome recipe. I love the texture and flavor of the cake with the fresh fruit topping. 🙂