American Flag Cake

  Today I want to share a recipe for the flag cake I made yesterday for a 4th of July cookout. It's made with white cake, vanilla icing, and fresh strawberries and blueberries. The cake is lower in saturated fat and cholesterol thanks to the use of egg whites and vegetable oil. Icing, however, really has to be made with a solid fat, otherwise it won't get thick enough. With this in mind, I say use real butter. You won't have to worry about trans fats, and the taste is unmatchable. 
  This cake is perfect for a 4th of July celebration, but could be made for any Summer holiday or party.

 

Recipe for White Cake
Ingredients:

1 box Duncan Hines white cake mix

1 pkg. Dream Whip

2 whole eggs

2 egg whites

1 1/4 cup water

1/4 cup oil

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 

Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Mix at medium to high speed until well blended and lumps are gone. 

Pour batter into a greased 9" x 13" pan. 

Bake for 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean. 

Cool completely before icing. 

Vanilla Icing Recipe

Ingredients: 

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter

1 box (approx. 2 1/2 to 3 cups) powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract 

1/4 cup skim milk

Directions: 

Combine all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. 

Mix at medium to high speed until creamy. 

Decorating the Cake: 

Wash blueberries and strawberries in advance, and let them drain. Slice the strawberries in half longways. 

When the cake has cooled completely, cover the full surface of the cake with icing. 

Place the blueberries in rows on the top left corner of the iced cake. It's helpful to mark your corners for the blue section, this gives you a guide so it's easier to get the rows straight. 

Then place the strawberry halves in rows for the red stripes on the cake. 

Keep the cake refrigerated so the fresh fruit doesn't get too soft.