Cherry Vanilla Cake with Red, White, & Blue Swirl Frosting
Celebrate July 4th or Memorial Day with this easy cherry vanilla sheet cake! The patriotic red white & blue swirl frosting is so festive!
I wasn’t sure what to title this post, lol!
This swirly frosting effect goes my so many different names. I’ve heard it called galaxy, mermaid, and unicorn. But since the colors here are red, white, and blue, I didn’t really think any of those names fit quite right.
So, I’ve settled on “cherry vanilla cake with red white & blue swirl frosting.” I mean, that’s what it is, right?
I was inspired by I am a Food Blog’s gorgeous unicorn cake. Honestly I don’t think it gets any prettier.
But we want a patriotic cake so we’re doing it with a red white & blue swirl. And don’t forget the edible star glitter! It’s the perfect finishing touch. I used what I already had on hand, which was silver, but I think it would have been even more magnificent with gold stars.
The cake is a simple vanilla butter cake, spiked with fresh cherries (the BEST summer fruit) and a hit of almond extract to bring out their sweet flavor. It’s moist and light and so delish.
A perfect bring-along to your summer cookout! Happy 4th, and I hope you enjoy!
More great July 4th recipes on my “Holiday” Pinterest board!
This post contains affiliate sales links.
Cherry Vanilla Cake with Red, White, & Blue Swirl Frosting
Ingredients
For the cherry vanilla cake
- 2 cups (250 g) cake flour
- 1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, , softened
- 4 large eggs
- 3/4 cup (183 g) milk
- 2/3 cup (153.33 g) sour cream
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 1 1/2 cups (207 g) dark-sweet cherries,, pitted and roughly chopped
For the red, white, & blue swirl frosting
- 6 large egg whites
- 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
- 2 cups (454 g) unsalted butter, , softened but cool
- Red gel paste food coloring
- Royal blue gel paste food coloring
- Violet gel paste food coloring
- Edible star-shaped glitter
Instructions
- Please visit Stemilt’s blog, The Stem, for the full recipe directions.
can you use blueberries instead of cherries since I don’t have them
I love the frosting and those tiny stars! What a fab idea, Allie :).
Thank you so much Julia! Hope you’re having a fun summer!