Red, White and Blue Layered Flag Cake

Tips from the Betty Crocker Kitchens

• tip 1
  For this flag cake recipe, you must use paste food color to achieve the bright red and blue colors. If you use liquid or gel food color, your cake color will be pastel.
• tip 2
  Find paste food color at large craft stores for this July 4th cake. Brands of paste food color can be different, so add an additional small amount of paste food color into cake batter, if you are looking for a darker red or blue color.
• tip 3
  Don’t have a 4-inch round biscuit cutter? For this patriotic cake, cut out a 4-inch circle of cooking parchment paper, and use it as a pattern.
• tip 4
  To easily cut cake layer horizontally to make 2 thin layers, mark side of cake with toothpicks and cut with long, thin serrated knife.
• tip 5
  Be sure to cool cake pans completely, then wash, dry, and spray with cooking spray, and line with cooking parchment paper before baking the second cake mix.
• tip 6
  To keep your serving plate clean while frosting the cake, place strips of waxed paper around edge of plate. Remove after frosting is complete.
• tip 7
  Applying a thin layer of frosting or a “crumb coat” to the cake and refrigerating helps to seal in the crumbs before the final frosting.
• tip 8
  Short on time? Make and bake cake layers the day before. Once cooled completely, store loosely covered on a cookie sheet at room temperature. The next day, continue with the recipe.
• tip 9
  Turn the leftover cake layers into a trifle! Cut leftover cake into 1-inch cubes, and layer with vanilla pudding and fresh berries in a large glass bowl. Top with whipped cream.
• tip 10
  At first glance, the assembly steps for this Red, White and Blue Layered Flag Cake may seem challenging, but you got this! We recommend reading the recipe thoroughly to be sure you understand the assembly steps before cutting the cake layers. This will make your assembly of the layers and frosting much easier and more seamless.