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29 Fourth of July Cakes That Sparkle

Like red, white, and blue layer cakes, ice cream cakes to keep you cool, and sheet cakes to feed a crowd.
Ice Cream Birthday Cake with a candle lit on top and champagne flutes to the side
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Sean Dooley, Food Styling by Kendra Vaculin

You could go all out and make the most patriotic dessert ever, but Fourth of July cakes don’t actually require red and white stripes or meticulously placed berries to be considered festive. A chocolate sheet cake is what we tend to want after a plate or two of hot dogs and potato salad. A no-bake ice cream cake is what cools us down after a day spent by the pool. A simple angel food cake topped with fresh blueberries and raspberries is red, white, and blue enough for us—but we get that some of you out there will want extra bang, boom, and pow. With that in mind, here are our favorite cakes for the Fourth of July, from the simple to the spectacular, to celebrate another summer in the USA.

All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.

  • Raspberry cream cream cake on a cake stand next to slices of cake on small plates
    Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Pearl Jones, prop styling by Summer Moore 
    1/29

    Raspberry Cake With Whipped Cream Filling

    Yes, this Fourth of July cake has stars (fresh raspberries) and stripes (layers of cake and icing), but strictly in shades of pink and red. She’s avant-garde, darling.

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  • Photograph by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Sean Dooley, Food Styling by Kendra Vaculin
    2/29

    Sheet-Pan Berry Shortcake

    This is a sort of slab shortcake, but if you and your family members are more of individual-shortcake people, try these classic Simple Strawberry Shortcakes.

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  • Photograph by Shawn Michael Jones, Prop Styling by Gerri Williams, Food Styling by Micah Morton
    7/29

    Glazed Funnel Cake With Fruit Confetti

    Are squiggly discs of deep-fried batter, in fact, cakes? If the name of this recipe means anything, then yes: funnel cakes are (crispy) cakes. So, we’re including them.

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  • Eva Kolenko
    8/29

    Blueberry-Lemon Icebox Cake

    The more particular you are when building layers in the loaf pan, the more neat and tidy this Fourth of July cake will look when sliced. (That said, if it’s a little uneven, so be it!)

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  • Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Pearl Jones and Thu Buser, prop styling by Sean Dooley
    11/29

    Sticky Chocolate Cake

    In the Venn diagram of sweet chocolate bakes, this recipe falls squarely in the middle of brownie, molten chocolate cake, and chocolate soufflé.

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  • Photograph by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Sean Dooley, Food Styling by Kendra Vaculin
    12/29

    Ice Cream Cake With So Many Sprinkles

    This make-ahead showstopper of an ice cream cake has confetti cake layers, vanilla and strawberry ice cream, and rainbow sprinkles. In short, it screams, “Let’s party.” Add sparklers, and suddenly, it's “Let’s party in the U.S.A.!”

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  • Photo by Travis Rainey, Food Styling by Drew Aichele, Prop Styling by Christina Allen
    13/29

    Old-Fashioned Blueberry Coffee Cake

    It’s July, blueberries are in season, and this is the Fourth of July coffee cake that will really make them shine. (And yes, the Fourth of July deserves breakfast cake as well as post-BBQ cake.)

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  • Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Mieko Takahashi, Prop Styling by Alex Massillon
    14/29

    Giant Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie

    There’s no need for stress if you can’t decide whether to make cookies or cake: Grab a skillet and bake a cookie cake, then serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

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  • Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Aneta Florczyk
    15/29

    Ginger-Raspberry Icebox Cake With Caramel Cream

    Part of the beauty of an icebox cake is that you don’t even have to turn on the oven to make it. The other part of the beauty? It’s delicious.

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  • Photograph by Joe Lingeman, food styling by Shilpa Uskokovic, prop styling by Marina Bevilacqua
    16/29

    Tahini Hot Fudge Skillet Cake

    Cleverly designed to be gluten-, dairy-, and mixer-free, this rich, brownie-like dessert really is a great choice for anyone, anywhere, anytime.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau, styling by Sean Dooley
    17/29

    BA’s Best Angel Food Cake

    Angel food cake is so simple, but the specific ingredients and equipment matter. Yes, for example, you do have to use a tube pan and cake flour. It all pays off; we promise.

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  • Photograph by Rana Düzyol, food styling by Pearl Jones, prop styling by Beth Pakradooni
    18/29

    Sour Cherry Crumb Cake

    In this Fourth of July cake, you’ll find a jammy swirl of sweet-tart cherries in a plush, buttery crumb cake topped with crispy, spiced streusel-y bits.

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  • Photograph by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Sean Dooley, Food Styling by Kendra Vaculin
    19/29

    Cookies and Cream Ice Cream Cake

    Even if it’s not a super-hot day out, keep an eye on this one when you bring it out of the freezer: It’s almost entirely ice cream, so the cake will lose its structure quickly. (Just pop it back into the freezer to re-chill.)

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  • Photograph by Yudi Ela Echevarria, food styling by Micah Morton, prop styling by Sean Dooley, Special thanks to Frank's House
    20/29

    Coconut and Cardamom Cake

    This butter cake features both coconut and cardamom for a floral, tropical take on classic yellow cake. If you’re a real cardamom sweets girlie, serve it with a scoop of Raspberry-Cardamom Yogurt Semifreddo.

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  • Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Pearl Jones
    21/29

    Tres Leches Cake

    This tres leches cake recipe gets its tenderness from the addition of a fourth type of milk (so, quatro leches?) and a kick from a shot of rum.

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  • Photograph by Joe Lingeman, food styling by Shilpa Uskokovic, prop styling by Marina Bevilacqua
    22/29

    Confetti Cake With Chocolate Frosting

    If there’s only one cake you ever learn to make, let it be this: a classic with soft, colorful vanilla cake layers and a rich chocolate-sour cream frosting.

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  • Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Prop Styling by Beth Pakradooni
    25/29

    Flourless Chocolate Meringue Cake

    This flourless chocolate cake features meringue both in the batter and on top, which bakes into a light and crispy shell with beautiful swirls.

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  • Photograph by Joe Lingeman, food styling by Shilpa Uskokovic, prop styling by Marina Bevilacqua
    26/29

    PB&J Dome Cake

    Peanut butter and jelly, an American classic. Here, though, it’s been given It-girl status: This dome cake is unique, impeccably styled, and, yes, high maintenance.

    View Recipe
Joe joined the Bon Appétit team in 2022 after climbing the editorial ranks for a few years at Condé Nast’s other food publication, Epicurious. As the senior SEO editor, he works to make sure Google loves all of BA’s cooking stories just as much as you do. Look for his... Read more
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