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36 Fourth of July Desserts That Will Steal the Show

Updated on June 06, 2024

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

Photo: Matt Armendariz ©
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Fourth of July 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. Patriotic cakes, pies, ice cream, slushies: we’ve packed these sweets with plenty of red, white and blue! You can’t go wrong with any of the all-American recipes in this lineup 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.

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Photo: Ryan Dausch
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Chocolate-Covered Frozen Bananas

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

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Photo: Matt
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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.

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Photo: RYAN DAUSCH
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Mini Cherry Pies

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

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Photo: Matt
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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.

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Red, White and Blueberry Trifle

Layer store-bought pound cake with homemade blueberry sauce, cream cheese topping and strawberries.
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Photo: Kate Mathis
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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.
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Photo: Teri Lyn Fisher
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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.

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Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcake

Layer a mixture of cooked rhubarb and strawberries with cake and freshly whipped cream.
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Photo: Levi Brown
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Stars-and-Stripes Gelatin

Slice into this retro-inspired beauty at the end of your Independence Day cookout.
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Photo: Kate Mathis
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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.
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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.
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Photo: Ralph Smith
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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!
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Photo: Brian Kennedy ©
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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.
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Blueberry Buttermilk Bundt Cake

Serve up this blueberry-studded bundt cake with a side of macerated strawberries.
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Photo: Matt Armendariz ©
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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.
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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.
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Photo: Alice Gao ©
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Ina's Flag Cake

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

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Berries with Spiced Cream

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

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Photo: Matt Armendariz
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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.

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Photo: Jeff Harris
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Red, White and Woohoo!

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

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Photo: Kate Mathis
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Red, White and Blue Cake Roll

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

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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.
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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.

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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.

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Raspberry-Watermelon Terrine with Blueberry Sauce

Watermelon- and raspberry-infused gelatin are layered together, then topped with blueberry sauce.
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Photo: Ryan Liebe
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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!

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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!

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Photo: Alice Gao ©
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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.
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Photo: Heather Ramsdell
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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.
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Photo: Levi Brown
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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.

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Photo: Matt Armendariz ©
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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.

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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.
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