4Th Of July Desserts

4th of July desserts should be patriotic or traditional. Either one of the 4th of July desserts outlined here make a great impression at a picnic or potluck to celebrate America's birthday. Both cakes take little skill to make, yet look spectacular. Here are directions to make fantastic 4th of July desserts.

4th of July Flag Cake

Ingredients:

• cake mix with eggs and oil as required
• white cake frosting
• 1 pint fresh strawberries
• 1 pint fresh blueberries
• paring knife
• cutting board
• frosting spreader spatula

1. Make a white cake according to package directions for 4th of July desserts. Bake in an 11" X 14" size cake pan. Cool completely. Turn out  of the pan when cool. Frost the cake on the top and all sides with white icing.
2. Rinse the berries. Let them drain, so they are fairly dry. Take the green tops off of the strawberries with the knife. Slice the strawberries on the cutting board.
3. Visualize or look at a picture of the U.S. flag. Create a design on the top of the cake, using berries. Line up the strawberry slices in rows, so they alternate with stripes of white frosting. Place the blueberries in a rectangle in the top left corner of the cake to represent the field of stars.
4. Take note that you probably won't be able to create the flag with the right number of stripes. The "stars" won't be exactly perfect either, but the effect is quite patriotic, and obviously looks like the flag as one of your  4th of July desserts. Arrange any leftover berries around the outside of the cake.

Pyrotechnical Spectacle 4th of July Desserts

Ingredients:

• cake mix with eggs and oil as required
• white cake frosting
• 1 pint fresh strawberries
• 1 pint fresh blueberries
• paring knife
• cutting board
• frosting spreader spatula
• several sparklers
• matches

1. Follow the flag cake recipe, steps one and two.
2. Pile the slices strawberries and blueberries on top of the cake. Do this right before serving. Mix them up, so it looks random and beautiful.
3. Stick three to five  sparklers in the top of the cake.  Make sure the side you light is up. Light the sparklers with the matches to get everyone's attention. Use common sense and follow all safety precautions in regard to using the sparklers. Happy 4th of July with your patriotic desserts!