American Flag Cake

Yields 36 servings – perfect for a July 4^th party.

Ingredients

FOR THE CAKE:

2 1/4 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pan

3 cups sugar

6 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup sour cream, at room temperature

1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan

1/3 cups cornstarch

1 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. baking soda

FOR THE ICING:

1 1/2 lb. cream cheese (3 8-ounce packages, not low-fat), at room temperature

1 lb. unsalted butter (4 sticks), at room temperature

1 lb. confectioners’ sugar, sifted

1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

2 half-pints blueberries

3 half-pints raspberries

Directions

1. For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350˚. Grease and flour a 17-by-12 1/2-inch sheet cake pan.
2. In a medium bowl with a mixer, mix the butter and sugar together on high speed until light and fluffy, about a minute or so. Add the eggs, two at a time. Mix after each addition. Add the sour cream and vanilla.
3. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cornstarch, kosher salt and baking soda. Turn the mixer to low and gradually add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture, one scoop at a time. Mix after every addition. Keep adding the flour mixture until just combined. Do not over mix! This batter will be a thicker cake batter.
4. Pour the thick cake batter into the prepared pan. With a spatula, spread the cake batter evenly over the pan.
5. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.
6. For the cream cheese icing: In a medium bowl, add the cream cheese and butter and with a mixer whip to combine. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla. Mix until thoroughly combined, scraping the sides once during mixing.
7. It’s helpful to refer to a picture of the American flag to decorate this cake and the cake should be decorated in landscape position. The stars/blueberries will be at top left corner of cake.
8. Put about ½ the frosting on the cake. Mark off the area of the stars with a toothpick. Prepare a pastry bag with a large star tip and fill up to 2/3 with icing. Gently twist the bag to keep icing from splurging out the top.
9. Grip the folded-down end tightly under your fingertips and start squeezing two lines of frosting at the bottom of the cake. Make two rows of raspberries on the cake, then add another two lines of frosting to create flag stripes.
10. Keep repeating: two lines of frosting, two lines of raspberries, two lines of frosting, etc.
11. Fill the square in the corner with a nice layer of blueberries. With the star tip, squeeze little dollops of frosting all over the blueberries to look like stars.

Celebrate July 4^th with this festive and delicious cake.