No 4^th of July celebration would be complete without the three F's: fireworks, family and an All-American Flag Cake! Before diving into the decoration of your flag cake, a very important decision must be made: should you keep the cake in its baking pan or invert it onto a serving tray before decorating? The decision should be made dependent on whether the flag cake will be carried a long or short distance before being served. If the cake will be traveling, we recommend decorating it in the pan it was baked in.

1 To make a flag cake, you will need a 9x13 inch cake (we baked a Creamy White Layers), two pints of strawberries, one pint of blueberries, and White Cake Frosting I. De-stem and cut the strawberries into halves. Wash and drain the blueberries on paper towels.

2 Whipped topping or whipped cream can be used in place of White Cake Frosting I, but the frosted cake will need to be refrigerated if whipped topping is used. Fluffy Boiled Icing will hold up well at outdoor picnics and barbeques. Spread the icing generously over the cake.

3 In the top left hand corner of the frosted cake, arrange the blueberries into an outline of a rectangle that is 5 inches wide and 4 inches tall. Press the berries down into the frosting.

4 Fill the blueberry outline in with the remaining blueberries. The blueberries will look best if placed in rows, the icing between them will resemble stars.

5 Place strawberry halves cut side down in rows going across the cake horizontally. The bottom stripe of the flag is red, so start the first row at the bottom. Be sure to press the berries down into the frosting so the stripes will not be raised above the fluffy frosting.

6 Serve any leftover berries with the sliced cake and ice cream. For a stunning holiday effect, place a couple of sparklers into the top of the cake. When darkness falls and fireworks begin to burst, light the sparklers and serve the cake during fireworks festivities!

Flag Cake
• Creamy White Layers
• White Cake Frosting I