Easy 4th of July Dessert Ideas: Red White and Blue Velvet Bundt Cake Recipe with a Cake Mix

Is there anything more fun than a red, white and blue dessert for the 4th of July?  My family has a potluck to celebrate every year and the festive desserts always get ate first!  Why?  Because festive is so much fun!  I will definitely be taking this Red White and Blue Velvet Bundt Cake to our family picnic and I know that everyone will go crazy for it.  

When I was trying to decide exactly what to make I knew I wanted it to be a Bundt Cake, although this Flag Fruit Pizza is also wonderful.

The only problem was figuring out exactly what kind.  Red velvet is my Darb’s all-time favorite but how was I going to get it white and blue?

I came up with a terrific solution.  Use a vanilla cake mix and then tint part of the batter blue and red.

Of course it wasn’t exactly that simple.  Red Velvet cakes are made with cocoa but I am telling you that even the few steps are totally worth it for a piece of this awesome cake.

How to make a Red, White & Blue Velvet Cake with a Cake Mix

Start with a vanilla cake mix.  Add 3 eggs, 1/2 cups of vegetable oil, 3/4 cup buttermilk and 1/4 cup water to a medium bowl with the cake mix.

Mix together using a hand held mixer {or by hand} until everything is nicely incorporated.

What is a Velvet Cake?

A velvet cake is a cake that has a combination of cocoa and buttermilk {and sometimes vinegar}.

That is why I have substituted most of the water with buttermilk.  The buttermilk will create a nice reaction to the cake that water can’t do.

To get the cocoa part of the cake, add 1/2 teaspoon of cocoa to two separate bowls.

Add one cup of the prepared vanilla cake mix to each bowl.

Then add 3-4 drops of red food coloring to one bowl and 3-4 drops of blue coloring {you could also add a little violet to deepen the color} to the other.

Stir to combine the cake mix, cocoa and food coloring.

Layering Batter for a Red White and Blue Bundt Cake

To get awesome layers of red, white and blue in the cake, start with a Bundt pan that has been liberally sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.

Add 1/4 cup of red cake batter to the bottom of one side of the pan.

Top with 1/4 cup of the leftover white cake batter.

Then a 1/4 cup of the blue cake batter on top of that.  And another layer of white.

It is important to add a layer of white between the red and the blue so that you don’t get purple.

Continue with the same sequence of batter, red, white, blue, white, red, white, blue, white…until all of the batter is gone.

As you can see, the cake batter will flow into the other side of the pan and fill the whole bottom.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and allow the cake to cool in the Bundt pan for 10 minutes before inverting it onto a cake plate.

You may have to use a butter knife to loosen areas of the cake that have stuck but you can see after 10 minutes it has released from the pan some.

Cream Cheese Frosting Glaze

While the cake is cooling completely on the cake plate, begin making the Cream Cheese Frosting.

Room temperature cream cheese and butter are creamed together with a hand held {or stand} mixer until smooth.  Then you add a little vanilla and powdered sugar.

The mixture will be thick but continue to mix until it comes together nicely.

To get a glaze consistency, microwave the frosting for 30 seconds.  Stir and then continue to microwave in 15 second increments until it is a pourable.

Cover the top of the cake with the cream cheese frosting glaze and then top with your favorite red and blue fruit.

I chose raspberries and blueberries but strawberries and blackberries work too!

The most satisfying part of making this red white and blue velvet bundt cake is cutting into it.  

I get so excited every single time I cut a slice because each piece is a little different.

I am telling you that this Red White and Blue Velvet Cake will be a total hit at your Independence Day gathering or any gathering for that matter.

People will wonder how you did it and I won’t tell anyone just how easy it was to make if you don’t!

5 Top Tips for the Perfect Bundt Cake

1. Start with a good nonstick Bundt pan.
2. Spray your Bundt pan liberally with nonstick spray {even if it is nonstick}.
3. Don’t over bake your Bundt cake.  Check it at 25 minutes and then check every couple of minutes after that.
4. Let your cake cool in the Bundt pan for 10 minutes before inverting it.  This is a magical number!  Don’t try too soon or it will stick.
5. Top your Bundt Cake with an amazing frosting or glaze to ensure that it stays moist and cover any imperfections.

Do you love festive desserts?  Try these recipes…

• 4th of July Cookie Bars
• Festive 4th of July Fruit Tray
• 3 Ingredient Cheesecake Fruit Dip
• Refreshing Red, White and Blue Fruit Salad
• Lime Simple Syrup