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Food & Recipes

These 4th of July Desserts Will Make You the Star of Any Party — 14 Easy Recipes

They're the sweetest way to say "Happy Birthday, USA!"

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Fireworks, flags and fun with loved ones — there’s no better way to honor America’s independence. And nothing says “4th of July” quite like a cookout with burgers, dogs and homemade treats. Anything made with love is sure to please — after all, we’ve never met a dessert we didn’t like.

And if you’re looking for extra-sweet ways to celebrate, you’re in luck. We’ve gathered some easy 4th of July dessert recipes that will make your barbecue one to remember. And while these cakes, cupcakes and more look like they took hours to make, they come together quicker than you can say “red, white and blue.” That means you can spend more time enjoying the festivities! Keep scrolling for our best 4th of July desserts :

“Happy Birthday, USA” Berry Trifle

4th of July trifle with blueberries and strawberries arranged like American flag
Food & Photo

Easy from-scratch cake cleverly layered with cream cheese frosting and juicy berries stack up to one irresistible treat—perfect for the 4th of July. 

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup cake flour
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • ⅛ tsp. salt
  • ⅓ cup butter, at room temp.
  • ⅔ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 egg whites
  • 2½ tsp. vanilla extract
  • ⅓ cup milk
  • 2 (8 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, at room temp.
  • 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • 4 cups heavy cream
  • 2½ (16 oz.) conts. strawberries, trimmed
  • ¼ cup seedless strawberry jam, melted
  • 1 cup blueberries

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 325°F. Coat 8” square baking pan with cooking spray. Line bottom with parchment paper; coat with cooking spray. Combine flour, baking powder and salt.
  2. On medium speed, beat butter and granulated sugar. Add egg whites and ½ tsp. vanilla extract. Alternately, beat in flour mixture and milk until smooth. Spread in pan. Bake until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 18-20 min. Cool. 
  3. On medium, beat half of cream cheese and half of confectioners’ sugar until smooth. On low, gradually beat in 2 cups cream then 1 tsp. extract until blended. On medium, beat until medium peaks form. Repeat with remaining cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, cream and extract. 
  4. Trim edges of cake; cut into 64 (8”x8”) pieces. Halve 22-28 strawberries. Slice remaining strawberries; toss with jam. Place ⅓ of halved strawberries, cut sides out, along bottom of 14-cup trifle bowl. Spoon 2 cups cream cheese mixture over of berries spreading to edge. Top with half of cake pieces, then half of sliced berry mixture.
  5. Repeat layering once. Line remaining halved strawberries and blueberries along edge as shown. Top with remaining cream mixture. 

Stars ’n’ Stripes Red Velvet Cake  

4th of July red velvet flag cake
Food & Photo

Talk about the perfect 4th of July dessert! Our clever flag cake features layers that bake in advance, leaving you more time to kick back and enjoy.

Ingredients:

  • ¼ cup cake flour 
  • ¼ cup cornstarch  
  • 1 Tbs. unsweetened cocoa powder  
  • 2 eggs, at room temp.
  • 2 egg yolks, at room temp. 
  • ½ cup + 2 Tbs. granulated sugar  
  • 1 Tbs. red liquid food coloring  
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract 
  • ⅛ tsp. salt  
  • 1 lemon
  • ¾ cup seedless strawberry jam  
  • 1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, at room temp. 
  • 2 Tbs. confectioners’ sugar 
  • 1 (4 oz.) bar white chocolate, melted  
  • 2 cups thawed frozen whipped topping  
  • 1 (1 pt.) cont. blueberries 
  • 1 cup sliced strawberries 

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat 13″x9″ baking pan with cooking spray. In bowl, whisk together cake flour, cornstarch and cocoa; reserve.
  2. In separate bowl, on medium speed, beat eggs, egg yolks, granulated sugar, food coloring, vanilla and salt until light and fluffy, 2 min. On low speed, beat in reserved flour mixture in 2 additions until just incorporated. Spread evenly in pan. Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, 13–15 min. Let cool 10 min.
  3. Place rack over pan; invert cake onto rack and remove pan. Let cool completely. If desired, wrap and freeze up to two weeks in advance; thaw before assembling.
  4. Grate 1 tsp. lemon zest and squeeze 1 Tbs. juice into bowl; whisk in jam. Reserve. On medium speed, beat cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar until smooth. Add white chocolate and whipped topping; beat until smooth. Transfer to pastry bag fitted with ½” round tip.  
  5. Using serrated knife, cut cake crosswise into 3 (9″x4″) rectangles. Place 1 rectangle on serving platter; spread top with ⅓ of jam mixture. Pipe ⅓ of frosting over jam layer. Reserve 16 blueberries; arrange ½ of remaining blueberries in single layer over frosting. Repeat layering once.
  6. Top with remaining cake rectangle; spread with remaining jam mixture. Pipe 5 white stripes over top. Arrange reserved blueberries in upper left corner to form square. Arrange strawberry slices in 4 rows between frosting to form stripes.

Raspberry Red Velvet Cupcakes 

4th of July Raspberry Red Velvet Cupcakes
Food & Photo

Freeze-dried fruit in the batter and cream cheese frosting give these delights a double dose of delicious flavor.

Ingredients:

  • 1 (15.25 oz.) pkg. red velvet cake mix
  • 3 eggs
  • ⅓ cup oil
  • 1 (1.25 oz.) pkg. freeze-dried raspberries, crushed
  • 2 cups butter, at room temp.
  • 1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, at room temp.
  • 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • Blue concentrated food coloring
  • Red no-taste concentrated food coloring

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 350°F. Line 24 muffin cups with cupcake liners. On low speed, beat cake mix, eggs, oil and 1 cup water, 30 sec. On medium, beat 2 min. Stir in dried raspberries.
  2. Divide batter among liners. Bake until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, 18–20 min. Let cool 5 min. Transfer from pans to rack; let cool.
  3. On medium, beat butter and cream cheese until fluffy, 2 min. On low, gradually beat in confectioners’ sugar and vanilla. On medium-high, beat until fluffy, 2–3 min.
  4. Transfer 1½ cups frosting to bowl; tint blue with food coloring. Divide remaining frosting between 2 bowls. Tint 1 red with food coloring.
  5. Transfer frostings to separate pastry bags fitted with medium star tips. Pipe red, white and blue frostings on cupcakes.  

Red, White & Blue Sprinkles Cake

4th of July Red, White & Blue Sprinkles Cake
Food & Photo

This fun cake gets even better when you cut into it to reveal layers of red, white and blue.

Ingredients:

  • 1 (15.25 oz.) pkg. white cake mix
  • 3 egg whites
  • ⅓ cup oil
  • Red and blue concentrated food colorings
  • 2¼ cups butter, at room temp.
  • 5½ cups confectioners’ sugar 
  • ½ cup sour cream
  • Red, white and blue sprinkles 

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 325°F. Grease and flour 3 (8″) round cake pans.
  2. Prepare cake mix according to pkg. directions with egg whites, oil and 1 cup water. Transfer 1⁄3 of batter to one pan. Divide remaining batter between 2 bowls; tint one red and one blue; transfer to separate pans.
  3. Bake until pick inserted in centers comes out clean, about 15 min. Cool 10 min. Transfer from pans to racks; cool. 
  4. On medium, beat butter 2 min. On low, beat in sugar, then sour cream. On medium-high, beat 3 min. Divide 1 cup frosting between 2 bowls; tint one red and one blue.
  5. Transfer frostings to pastry bags fitted with star tips. Spread blue cake layer with 1 cup white frosting. Top with white layer; spread with 1 cup frosting. Add red layer; spread top and side with frosting. Add sprinkles. Pipe on tinted frostings.

Red ’n’ Blue Velvet Cake Stacks

4th of July Red ’n’ Blue Velvet Cake Stacks
Rhapsody Media

Marshmallow fluff in the frosting makes these mini stacks even more irresistible.

Ingredients:

  • 1 (15.25 oz.) pkg. white cake mix
  • 3 egg whites
  • ½ cup oil
  • 1 tsp. cocoa powder
  • Blue and red concentrated food colorings
  • 1 cup butter, at room temp.
  • 1 (7 oz.) jar marshmallow creme
  • 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • ½ tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 star fruit, sliced

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 325°F. Grease 2 (151⁄4″ x101⁄4″) rimmed baking sheets. Line bottom with parchment; grease.
  2. On low, beat cake mix, whites, oil, 1 cup water and cocoa, 30 sec.; on medium, beat 2 min. Divide batter among 2 bowls. Tint one blue and one red. Transfer to separate baking sheets. Bake until set in centers, 12 min. Cool. 
  3. On medium, beat butter until fluffy. On low, beat in fluff, then sugar and vanilla. On medium, beat 2 min. Transfer to pastry bag fitted with plain tip.
  4. Using 2½” round cutter, cut out 15 shapes from each cake. Layer cake rounds with frosting. Add star fruit.

Crispies Bundt Cake 

4th of July Crispies Bundt Cake
Food & Photo

Transform marshmallow treats into a grand Fourth of July finale—it’s easy with colorful candy.

Ingredients: 

  • ⅓ cup butter
  • 2 (10 oz.) pkgs. mini marshmallows
  • 1 Tbs. vanilla extract
  • 10⅔ cups crispy rice cereal 
  • 1 (2.4 oz.) cont. red, white and blue star sprinkles 
  • ¼ cup red candy melts
  • ¼ cup white candy melts
  • ¼ cup royal blue candy melts

Directions:

  1. Coat 11-cup Bundt pan with cooking spray.
  2. In large pot, melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows; cook, stirring, until melted. Stir in vanilla extract. 
  3. Remove from heat. Stir in cereal, then sprinkles. Press into pan. Cool. Invert onto serving plate; remove pan.
  4. In separate microwave-safe bowls, microwave candy in 15-sec. intervals, stirring, until melted. Drizzle over cake. Let dry, about 20 min.

Strawberries ‘n’ Cream Chocolate Cupcakes 

4th of July Strawberries ‘n’ Cream Chocolate Cupcakes
Food & Photo

We subbed in applesauce for oil in our fudgy cake batter for a lightened-up treat sure to satisfy.

Ingredients:

  • 1 (15.25 oz.) pkg. dark chocolate fudge cake mix
  • 3 eggs
  • ⅓ cup unsweetened applesauce
  • ½ cup mini chocolate chips
  • 4½ cups thawed frozen whipped topping, from 2 (8 oz.) conts.
  • 1 (16 oz.) cont. strawberries, sliced
  • Fresh blueberries 

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 350ºF. Line 24 muffin cups with cupcake liners.
  2. On low speed, beat cake mix, 1 cup water, eggs and applesauce until blended, 30 sec.; on medium, beat 2 min. Stir in chocolate chips. Divide batter evenly among liners.
  3. Bake until toothpick inserted into centers comes out clean, 17-20 min. Let cool 10 min. Transfer from pans to racks; let cool completely.
  4. Carefully slice off top of each cupcake; reserve tops. Dollop about 2 Tbs. topping on each cupcake. Arrange strawberries over topping.
  5. Cover with cupcake tops; dollop on remaining topping. Garnish with blueberries.

Fourth of July Celebration Cake

Fourth of July Celebration Cake
HBB

Move over, fireworks — this holiday-special chocolate layer cake is sure to get tons of oohs and aahs.

Ingredients:

  • 1 (15.25 oz.) pkg. dark chocolate fudge cake mix
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 3 eggs
  • ⅓ cup oil
  • ½ cup mini chocolate chips
  • 2 cups butter (1 lb.), at room temp.
  • 2 cups shortening, at room temp.
  • 8 cups confectioners’ sugar, from 3 (16 oz.) pkgs.
  • 6 Tbs. milk
  • 4 tsp. vanilla extract, preferably clear
  • ½ tsp. almond extract          
  • No-taste red and royal blue concentrated food colorings

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 325°F. Grease and flour 3 (8″) round cake pans.
  2. On low speed, beat cake mix, buttermilk, eggs and oil 30 sec.; on medium speed, beat 2 min. Stir in chocolate chips. Divide among pans. Bake until toothpick inserted into centers comes out clean, 18–20 min. Cool 10 min. Transfer from pans to racks; cool.
  3. On medium speed, beat 1 cup butter and 1 cup shortening until fluffy, 2 min. On low speed, gradually beat in 4 cups sugar, then 3 Tbs. milk, 2 tsp. vanilla and ¼ tsp. almond extract until blended; on medium-high speed, beat until fluffy. Reserve.
  4. Repeat with remaining butter, shortening, sugar, milk, vanilla and almond extract to make more frosting. Transfer 2 cups to smaller bowl; tint red. Repeat to make 2 cups blue frosting. Transfer red, blue and 1 cup white frosting to separate pastry bags fitted with medium star tip.
  5. Place 1 cake layer on plate. Spread with 1 cup of remaining white frosting. Top with second cake layer; spread with 1 cup of remaining white frosting. Top with remaining cake layer; spread top and sides with remaining white frosting. Chill until set, 30 min. 
  6. Starting from bottom of cake and working up sides, pipe on red and white rosettes. Cover top with blue rosettes.

Red, White & Blue Coconut-Lime Sorbet Cups

Red, White & Blue Coconut-Lime Sorbet Cup
Food & Photo

These easier-than-they-look dessert parfaits come together with just a blender and a few hours of chill time. 

Ingredients:

  • 1¼ cups sugar, divided
  • 2 limes, juiced and divided
  • 2 (14 oz.) cans coconut milk, chilled
  • ¼ cup blueberries
  • Blue food coloring
  • 1 cup frozen cherries
  • 1½ cups frozen strawberries

Directions:

  1. In bowl, combine 1 cup water, sugar, ¼ cup lime juice and ½ tsp. lime zest. Chill 15 min. or until sugar dissolves. 
  2. In blender, puree coconut milk with ¾ cup sugar syrup. Pour half the mixture into a wide, shallow container. Freeze 4 hrs. or until sorbet has crystallized. Remove from freezer; scrape with fork. Transfer to food processor; puree until smooth. Freeze 1 hr. more or until frozen through. 
  3. With remaining half of coconut mixture in blender, add blueberries and blue food coloring to create desired hue. Freeze according to directions in step 2.
  4. In clean blender, combine cherries and strawberries with ½ cup sugar syrup. Freeze according to directions in step 2.
  5. To assemble, scoop ⅓ cup blueberry sorbet into 6 glasses each. Scoop ⅓ cup coconut sorbet on top of blueberry layer; top with ⅓ cup strawberry-cherry sorbet. Garnish with fresh fruit, if desired. 

Berry White Chocolate Layer Cake

Berry White Chocolate Layer Cake
Food & Photo

So easy yet utterly impressive — whip up this mix-magic treat covered in a cloud of white chocolate frosting

Ingredients:

  • 1 (16.5 oz.) box white cake mix
  • 2 (4 oz) bars white chocolate, melted and cooled to room temp. 
  • 2 (8 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, softened
  • ½ cup powdered sugar 
  • ⅔ cup blueberry preserves
  • ⅔ cup strawberry preserves
  • 1 cup blueberries
  • 1 cup strawberries

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour three 9” cake pans. Prepare cake mix as package directs. Divide batter evenly among pans. Bake 20 min. or until done. Let cook in pans 10 min. Invert onto cooling rack. Let cool completely.
  2. Using electric mixer, beat together white chocolate, cream cheese and powdered sugar 2 min. or until smooth and fluffy, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. 
  3. Spread blueberry jam on top of first layer of cake; spread ¾ cup of frosting on underside of second layer of cake and sandwich onto first layer. Spread raspberry jam on second layer of cake; spread ¾ cup of frosting on underside of third layer of cake and sandwich onto second layer.
  4. Coat sides and tip of cake with remaining frosting. Garnish with berries.

Star Sandwich Cookies

4th of July Star Sandwich Cookies
Food & Photo

These cute, crowd-pleasing cookies are a snap to make, thanks to a headstart from refrigerated cookie dough.

Ingredients:

  • 1 (16.5 oz.) tube refrigerated sugar cookie dough
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • ¼ tsp. almond extract
  • ½ tsp. red no-taste concentrated food coloring
  • ¼ tsp. royal blue concentrated food coloring
  • (16 oz.) cont. cream cheese frosting

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 350°F. Knead dough, flour and extract until smooth; divide in half. Tint one dough piece red and the other blue with food colorings.
  2. On lightly floured surface, roll out each dough piece to ¼” thickness. Using 2½” star cookie cutter, cut out shapes.
  3. Transfer to ungreased baking sheets. Bake until crisp, 10–12 min. Let cool 5 min. Transfer to rack; let cool. 
  4.  Spread about 2 Tbs. frosting over each red cookie; top each with a blue cookie. Cover; chill until filling is firm, 1 hr.

Sky-High Red, White & Blue Icebox Cake

Sky-High Red, White & Blue Icebox Cake
Food & Photo

Stacked with lemon cookies, fresh berries and vanilla whipped cream, this no-bake cake is like a taste of summer.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 (28 oz.) box thin lemon cookies, such as Dewey’s
  • 2 cups sliced strawberries
  • 2 cups blueberries
  • Mint and additional berries (optional)

Directions:

  1. On medium speed, beat cream, sugar and vanilla until stiff peaks form, about 3 min.
  2. On large plate, spread layer of whipped cream and top with layer of cookies. Add layer of blueberries and repeat layering as shown, alternating cream, strawberries, cookies and blueberries, finishing with whipped cream. 
  3. Chill cake at least 4 hrs. or overnight. If desired, garnish with mint and additional berries just before serving.

Berry Shortcakes

4th of July Berry Shortcakes
Food & Photo

These adorable desserts are perfect for picnics – simply bake the biscuits up to a day ahead, then assemble when ready to serve.  

Ingredients:

  • 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 Tbs. baking powder
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • ½ cup cold butter, cut into pieces 
  • ¾ cup milk
  • 2 Tbs. coarse decorating sugar
  • 2 cups sweetened whipped cream
  • 2½ cups blueberries and sliced strawberries
  • Mint sprigs (optional)

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 400ºF. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.
  2. In food processor, pulse flour, baking powder and salt; pulse until mixed. Add butter; pulse until butter is size of small peas. Add milk; pulse until dough forms.
  3. On floured surface, roll out dough ½” thick. Fold dough in half; roll out to ¼” thick. Using 3” star-shaped cutter, cut out 16 stars, rerolling scraps as necessary. Sprinkle tops with sugar; transfer to baking sheet. Bake until golden, 10-12 min.; cool. 
  4. For each serving, top 1 star with 3 Tb. whipped cream, ¼ cup berries, then another star. Top with 1 Tbs. whipped cream and 1 Tbs. berries. If desired, garnish with mint.

Mini Berry White Chocolate Cheesecakes

Mini Berry White Chocolate Cheesecakes
Food & Photo

These berry-topped gems are nestled in an easy 3-ingredient graham cracker crust. 

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
  • 6 Tbs. sugar
  • 4 Tbs. butter, melted
  • 1¼ cups heavy cream
  • 4 oz. white chocolate, chopped 
  • 2 (8 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, at room temp.
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 (0.25 oz.) env. unflavored gelatin 
  • 8 medium strawberries, trimmed, quartered
  • 30 blueberries
  • 6 raspberries 

Directions:

  1. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Place 6 (3”x2”) ring molds on baking sheet. Mix graham cracker crumbs and 2 Tbs. sugar; stir in butter. Press into bottom of ring molds. Chill 20 min. 
  2. On medium-high speed, beat 1 cup cream and 2 Tbs. sugar until stiff; reserve.
  3. In microwave-safe bowl, combine chocolate and remaining ¼ cup cream. Microwave in 15-sec. intervals, stirring, until melted.  
  4. On medium speed, beat cream cheese and remaining 2 Tbs. sugar until smooth; beat in vanilla and white chocolate mixture.
  5. In 1-qt. microwave-safe bowl, stir 2 Tbs. water into gelatin; let stand until absorbed, 5 min. Microwave until melted, 10-15 sec. Stir in 1 cup cream cheese mixture (if lumps form, microwave in 15-sec. intervals until smooth).
  6. Fold gelatin mixture back into remaining cream cheese mixture. Fold in whipped cream. Spread filling in molds. Cover; chill 3 hrs.
  7. Run knife around insides of molds; remove molds. Garnish cheesecakes with berries.
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