36 Fourth of July Desserts That Will Steal the Show

Add a delicious splash of red, white and blue to your table with these sweet, summertime treats.

June 08, 2022

By: Food Network Kitchen

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Desserts That Dazzle

After a long day of barbecuing and feeding a crowd, there’s no better way to end the night than with a few star-spangled treats — and maybe a cocktail or two. Cakes, pies, ice cream, slushies: we’ve packed these sweets with plenty of red, white and blue! You can’t go wrong with an all-American blueberry pie, patriotic crispy rice treats or a berry trifle but, if you ask us, a flag cake is a must. This one is a breeze to decorate too, thanks to the clever use of piped frosting and fresh berries. It’s the perfect treat while watching the fireworks.

Get the Recipe: Flag Cake

Chocolate-Covered Frozen Bananas

Bananas, candy melts and sprinkles are all you need to make these sparkling frozen treats.

Get the Recipe: Chocolate-Covered Frozen Bananas

Red, White and Blue Crispy Rice Treats

These delicious cereal treats will be the talk of your Fourth of July cookout. The different layers are easily achieved with a few drops of food coloring, then the whole pan is topped with a dusting of red, white and blue sprinkles.

Get the Recipe: Red, White and Blue Crispy Rice Treats

Mini Cherry Pies

To end the day on a sweet note, serve these mini cherry pies with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Get the Recipe: Mini Cherry Pies

Watermelon Granita

This easy make-ahead dessert combines fresh watermelon with sugar and lemon to create an icy treat. Puree all of the ingredients, then freeze in a sheet pan. Rake and serve in cups.

Get the Recipe: Watermelon Granita

Red, White and Blueberry Trifle

Layer store-bought pound cake with homemade blueberry sauce, cream cheese topping and strawberries.

Get the Recipe: Red, White and Blueberry Trifle

Stars-and-Stripes Cupcakes

This impressive dual-frosting detail is easier to re-create than you think. Filled with both colors of frosting at once, a plastic zip-top bag is all you need to pipe a celebratory swirl.

Get the Recipe: Stars and Stripes Cupcakes

Raspberry-Watermelon Terrine with Blueberry Sauce

Watermelon- and raspberry-infused gelatin are layered together, then topped with blueberry sauce.

Get the Recipe: Raspberry-Watermelon Terrine With Blueberry Sauce

American Flag Ice Cream Cake

This red, white and blue ice cream cake is sure to become a summer classic. It's easier than it looks, thanks to a press-in-the-pan crust made from shortbread cookie crumbs. Then it's just a matter of layering on jam and a no-churn homemade ice cream. Parchment templates make fast work of creating the stripes.

Get the Recipe: American Flag Ice Cream Cake

Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcake

Layer a mixture of cooked rhubarb and strawberries with cake and freshly whipped cream.

Get the Recipe: Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcake

Stars-and-Stripes Gelatin

Slice into this retro-inspired beauty at the end of your Independence Day cookout.

Get the Recipe: Stars-and-Stripes Gelatin

Blueberry Frozen Yogurt

When frozen as directed, the yogurt will have a light granita texture that can be easily scraped with a fork. If you prefer a smoother texture, you can spin the yogurt mixture in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Get the Recipe: Blueberry Frozen Yogurt

Ice Cream Flag Cake

Make sure you have an audience when you cut into this Fourth of July dessert: Each slice is a cake-and-ice-cream flag!

Get the Recipe: Ice Cream Flag Cake

Patriotic Hand Pie Ice Cream Sandwiches

Turn raspberry- and blueberry-filled hand pies into ice cream sandwiches and you'll have a patriotic take on pie a la mode no one will be able to resist.

Get the Recipe: Patriotic Hand Pie Ice Cream Sandwiches

Blueberry Buttermilk Bundt Cake

Serve up this blueberry-studded bundt cake with a side of macerated strawberries.

Get the Recipe: Blueberry Buttermilk Bundt Cake

Berries with Spiced Cream

You’re only six ingredients and 10 minutes away from getting this patriotic-hued treat on the table.

Get the Recipe: Berries with Spiced Cream

Red Velvet-Blueberry Ice Cream Pie

Skip the old-fashioned flag cake this year and make a red velvet-crusted pie with layers of blueberry sorbet and vanilla ice cream.

Get the Recipe: Red Velvet-Blueberry Ice Cream Pie

Easy Ice Cream

Who doesn’t love vanilla ice cream? Serve Trisha’s shortcut version as part of a sundae bar or as a topping for your favorite bakery treat.

Get the Recipe: Easy Ice Cream

Waving Flag Cake

Store-bought angel food cake is the brilliant shortcut ingredient in this festive dessert that's big enough to serve a crowd.

Get the Recipe: Waving Flag Cake

Star-Studded Berry Tarts

These individual fruit topped tarts make it easy to eat dessert with one hand and hold your drink with the other.

Get the Recipe: Star-Studded Berry Tarts

Red, White and Blue Cherry Pies

Keep your dessert all to yourself with these individual freeform pies that are full of cherry pie filling and topped with a fresh blueberry sauce.

Get the Recipe: Red, White, and Blue Cherry Pies

Red Velvet Fireworks Cake

A six-layer (!) cake totally coated in sprinkles has enough of a wow factor to rival the evening's annual fireworks display.

Get the Recipe: Red Velvet Fireworks Cake

Red, White and Blue Ice Cream Sandwiches

Need a last-minute treat? Look no further. You can turn old-fashioned ice cream sandwiches into patriotic treats in just 10 minutes.

Get the Recipe: Red, White and Blue Ice Cream Sandwiches

Blueberry-Elderflower Pie

A little elderflower liqueur in the crust and the filling goes a long way in adding flavor to this beautiful blueberry pie. We guarantee your family’s never had a pie quite like this one!

Get the Recipe: Blueberry-Elderflower Pie

Mixed Berry Shortcake

Strawberry shortcake is never a bad idea. But when you use mixed berries — think blueberries, blackberries and raspberries — along with strawberries, you get a red, white and blue dessert that’s as eye-catching as it is delicious.

Get the Recipe: Mixed Berry Shortcake

Star Confetti Cookies

These simple sugar cookies hold their shape when baked, so your cut-outs will have nice, clean edges. Mixed with red, white and blue confetti stars, they're a festive treat for a patriotic celebration.

Get the Recipe: Star Confetti Cookies

Fireworks Red, White and Blue Daiquiris

Use frozen strawberries for the red base, blue Curacao liqueur for the middle layer and coconut sorbet with rum for the white topping in this patriotic cocktail.

Get the Recipe: Fireworks Red, White and Blue Daiquiris

Crispy-Treat Cheesecake Bars

Sweeten your Fourth of July (or any celebration) with these crunchy-creamy bars. The cheesecake layer is the perfect yin to the yang of the crackly rice cereal. Make the bars a day ahead, then cut and top with berries before serving.

Get the Recipe: Crispy-Treat Cheesecake Bars

Ina's Flag Cake

Patriotic and delicious, there's no better centerpiece for your July Fourth celebration.

Get the Recipe: Flag Cake

Lemon Icebox Pie

Ree’s refreshing recipe is the perfect sendoff for a 4th of July barbecue. Decorate the whipped cream topping with red and blue berries for a patriotic touch.

Get the Recipe: Lemon Icebox Pie

Red, White and Woohoo!

Jazz up everyday sugar-cookie mix with food coloring for a patriotic take on a towering icebox cake.

Get the Recipe: Red, White and Woohoo!

Blackberry-Chip Ice Cream

Ree breaks down fresh blackberries to use in homemade ice cream. After churning in an ice cream maker, chop chocolate into chunks and stir into the ice cream. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for several hours or overnight.

Get the Recipe: Blackberry Chip Ice Cream

Red, White and Blue Cake Roll

This twist on a classic dessert proves that swirls and stripes are even better together.

Get the Recipe: Red, White and Blue Cake Roll

Fruit-Tart Flag

Here's a new take on the classic flag cake: miniature tart shells filled with mascarpone cream, then decorated with blueberries and strawberries.

Get the Recipe: Fruit-Tart Flag

All-American Mosaic Cake

You won’t believe how easy it is to make this funky festive dessert. Melt red and blue candy melts, pour onto baking sheets and refrigerate until set. Then break the candy into shards and press onto a frosted white cake!

Get the Recipe: All-American Mosaic Cake

Strawberry Sauce

You can make this easy strawberry sauce up to four days ahead of your Fourth of July cookout, which means you’ll have more time on the big day to simply relax and enjoy yourself.

Get the Recipe: Strawberry Sauce