Flag Cake!

This is a cake I crafted for the Fourth of July this year. It consisted of two giant (11inx17in) slabs of white cake (egg whites only for the brightest white!), with vanilla whipped cream frosting and strawberry slices between the layers. On top is the same frosting, with raspberries, blueberries, and piped frosting for decoration. For authenticity of my dimensions, I employed the use of this:

as well as a ruler and a toothpick. Toothpicks are ideal for drawing guidelines in your base layer of frosting before going over them with your decorating materials. The faint lines are completely covered by your decorations, and the rows of berries end up much straighter than they might have been if thrown on freehand!

The cake layers were baked and assembled the evening before the occasion, and frosted the following day. I waited to place the berries until the morning to prevent them from staining the white frosting with their juice, as berries are wont to do. I used a different style of piping for each of the white stripes, mostly for additional practice on my part, which turned out to have a nice effect. I wish I had a better photo to share, but we were just able to snap this one before grabbing the (very heavy) cake and rushing out the door! It is a crowd-pleaser for sure, and will definitely be made again - maybe next year there will be time for a more dignified photo of this delicious and simple cake.