Summary
This red, white and blue bundt cake is a festive patriotic dessert perfect for the 4th of July, Memorial Day, or any celebration. Vanilla cake is swirled with raspberry and blueberry batters, then baked into a show-stopping Bundt. Finished with a simple pourable marshmallow glaze and sprinkles, it’s easy to make, colorful, and delicious.
Looking for the perfect show-stopping dessert for your next patriotic celebration? This red, white, and blue bundt cake is bursting with festive color and fruity flavor, making it ideal for the 4th of July, Memorial Day, Labor Day, or any time you want to celebrate America in style.
With swirls of raspberry and blueberry cake batters swirled between a vanilla base, this bundt cake not only looks beautiful, but it tastes amazing. To top it all off, it’s finished with an easy pourable marshmallow glaze and plenty of red, white, and blue sprinkles.
Whether you’re a beginner baker or a seasoned pro, this bundt cake recipe is simple to make but impressive enough to be the star of your dessert table.
“Summerizing” a Recipe
Being that the 4th of July tends to be hot and humid where I live, I decided that a Bundt cake would be a better choice than a cake with buttercream frosting, since buttercream would melt. I found this recipe by House of Nash Eats for a red, white and blue Bundt cake. I happened to have bottles of raspberry and blueberry emulsions, so I decided to switch up the flavors of the original recipe to add in berry flavored swirls. Nothing says summer like the taste of berries!
Why You’ll Love This Red, White and Blue Bundt Cake
- Festive & fun – The colorful red, white, and blue swirls create a wow factor with every slice.
- Raspberry & blueberry flavor – Fruit emulsions add a bright, fresh flavor that’s more intense than extracts.
- Easy glaze – No need for fancy buttercream. A simple marshmallow icing pours beautifully over the cake.
- Perfect for patriotic holidays – Great for summer gatherings, BBQs, and holiday picnics.
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Ingredients You’ll Need
This cake uses a classic vanilla base with colorful swirls added in. Here’s what makes it special:
- Red batter: Flavored with raspberry emulsion and tinted with red gel food coloring
- Blue batter: Flavored with blueberry emulsion and tinted with blue gel food coloring
- White batter: Classic vanilla with a hint of almond extract
- Marshmallow glaze: Made with marshmallow cream, powdered sugar, and heavy cream for a pourable finish
Don’t forget the red, white, and blue sprinkles to give your cake a festive sparkle!
What is the Difference Between an Extract and an Emulsion?
You might not ever have heard of an emulsion before. You typically will not find these in a supermarket. Michael’s craft store actually has a very good selection of them in their baking supplies aisle.
The main difference between an extract and an emulsion is that extracts are alcohol-based, whereas emulsions are water-based. Since alcohol cooks off at high temperatures, some of the flavor from an extract “fades” during baking. Emulsions retain their flavor more during baking.
If you have watched a baking competition show on television, you might have heard the judges comment that they can’t taste the flavor that the baker had added to their batter. That could be that they tried just adding the juice from a fruit, which is not as concentrated as an emulsion. In order to really taste the flavor, they would have to add more of that juice, which would then make the batter too watery. So an emulsion is great when you want fruit flavor without diluting your batter with too much liquid.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Make the vanilla cake batter – Start by creaming butter and sugar, then mix in the oil, egg whites, milk, and extracts. Alternate adding dry and wet ingredients until you have a smooth batter.
- Tint and flavor – Divide portions of the batter into separate bowls. Flavor one with raspberry emulsion and add red food coloring, another with blueberry emulsion and blue food coloring.
- Pipe into the bundt pan – Use piping bags or zip-top bags to neatly layer the red and blue batters inside the pan. Add the white batter to fill in between. No swirling is needed—the colors will settle on their own as they bake.
- Bake & cool – Bake for about 60–70 minutes. Let the cake cool completely before adding the glaze.
- Make the glaze – Stir together marshmallow cream, powdered sugar, and heavy cream until it’s thick but pourable. Drizzle over the cooled cake and top with sprinkles.
Tips for the Best Bundt Cake
- To get the swirled effect, it is best to use a Bundt pan that has a swirled design. I love the Heritage Bundt pan.
- Spray your bundt pan with baking spray that contains flour for easy release. I like to use Pam Baking Spray, as it quickly coats all the nooks and crannies of a Bundt pan.
- Use a cake thermometer or toothpick to check doneness. The toothpick should come out clean.
- Only mix the glaze until pourable. If it’s too thin, it will soak into the cake.
- Bake the cake the day before your event, then glaze it just before serving.
- If there is any residue left in the pan after cleaning it, you can use a Bundt cleaning tool, which has a little brush that is perfect for removing crumbs from the grooves of the pan.
Variations
- Different occasions: Swap out the colors to make this bundt cake work for birthdays, Christmas, or other holidays.
- Other flavors: Try lemon, strawberry, or even coconut emulsions for fun twists.
Storage
Keep your decorated cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. For best results, let it come to room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.
Final Thoughts
This red, white and blue bundt cake is the ultimate patriotic dessert. With its vibrant swirls of raspberry and blueberry inside a vanilla cake, plus that marshmallow glaze on top, it’s a treat that’s as festive as it is delicious.
Bring it to your next 4th of July BBQ, Memorial Day picnic, or family gathering as a centerpiece to your dessert table.
If you are looking for other patriotic desserts, check out my Red, White and Blue Peanut Butter M&M Cookies or Strawberry Blueberry Pie.
Red, White & Blue Raspberry & Blueberry Bundt Cake
Equipment
- Bundt pan 10 cup capacity
- 2 Piping bags or zippered plastic bags
- Electric mixer or stand mixer
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 6 egg whites
- ¾ cup milk room temperature
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp almond extract
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp raspberry emulsion
- ½ tsp blueberry emulsion
- red gel food coloring
- blue gel food coloring
Marshmallow Icing
- 1 cup marshmallow cream (about half of a 7 oz container of Fluff)
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp heavy whipping cream
- red, white & blue sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed untill it is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the oil and beat until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.1 cup unsalted butter, 2 cups granulated sugar, ½ cup vegetable oil
- In a medium bowl, whisk the egg whites, milk, vanilla and almond extracts. Set aside.6 egg whites, ¾ cup milk, 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract, ¼ tsp almond extract
- In the mixer bowl, add the baking powder, baking soda, salt and 1 cup of the flour. Mix on a low speed just until incorporated. Then add half the egg mixture and mix on low until incorporated. Add 1 cup of flour, mix just until incorporated. Add the rest of the egg mixture and mix until incorporated. Add the final 1 cup of flour and mix just until incorporated. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix on low for a few seconds until evenly incorporated.1 ½ tsp baking powder, ½ tsp baking soda, 1 ½ tsp salt, 3 cups all-purpose flour
- Use a liquid measuring cup to transfer 1 ¼ cups of batter into a small bowl. Add the raspberry emulsion and a toothpick of red gel food coloring. Mix well with a spoon until the color is evenly distributed. In a second bowl, transfer another 1 ¼ cups of the white batter. Add the blueberry emulsion and a toothpick of the blue gel food coloring. Mix until the color is evenly distributed.½ tsp raspberry emulsion, ½ tsp blueberry emulsion, red gel food coloring, blue gel food coloring
- Stand up the piping bags or plastic zippered bags in a drinking glass with the tip folded upwards so the batter does not go all the way into the corner of the bag. Spoon the red and blue batters into the 2 bags.
- Spray the bundt pan with baking spray that has flour in it.
- Cut about ½ inch off the tip of the red batter bag. Pipe the red batter into alternating swirls of the sides of the bundt pan. Just pipe into the edge of the pan, about halfway up from the bottom. Repeat the process with the blue batter.
- Spoon about half of the white batter into the bundt pan to fill up the interior of the base. Pipe more of the red batter and blue batter up the sides of the pan if some slid down. Pipe the remaining red and blue batter in alternating dots on top of the white batter. Top it off with the remaining white batter. You do not need to swirl the colors together, as they will naturally settle as they bake.
- Bake for 60-70 minutes. Insert a cake thermometer or toothpick into the tallest part of the cake, about 1-2 inches deep. Bake for an additional 5 minutes at a time until the batter no longer comes out wet, or until the cake thermometer turns red.
- Let cool in the pan on a cooling rack for 15 minutes. If it has domed, use a serrated knife to trim off the excess so that the cake has a flat surface to sit upon when it comes out of the pan. Then, put a cake board or dish upside down on top of the pan. Use oven mitts to flip the cake over onto the board or dish. Gently shake the pan to release. Let cool completely, about 2 hours, before icing.
Marshmallow Icing
- In a small bowl, use a spoon mix the marshmallow cream, powdered sugar, and heavy whipping cream until it becomes a thick, yet pourable consistency. Drizzle the icing over the cooled cake. Add sprinkles, if desired.1 cup marshmallow cream, ¼ cup powdered sugar, 1 tbsp heavy whipping cream, red, white & blue sprinkles
Notes
- Only mix the marshmallow icing until it becomes slightly pourable. Otherwise, it could be too thin and soak into the cake instead of staying on the surface.
- The cake can be made the day before and kept undecorated in an airtight container at room temperature. Then add the icing within a few hours of serving it.
- Switch up the color combinations depending on the occasion.
- Experiment with different flavor emulsions for the colored batters to “match” the color.
- Store the cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
