41 Fourth of July Desserts for Star-Spangled Summer Fun
The best Fourth of July desserts take advantage of an auspicious bit of timing: The US celebrates its Independence Day right around the time that berries—blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, and raspberries—are approaching their sweetest, juiciest, and most colorful. Coincidence? Who’s to say? These red, white, and blue desserts make the most of summer’s bounty in extraordinarily festive fashion. There are star-spangled cakes (and we mean that literally—this cake looks just like an American flag). There are plenty of cool frozen treats, including icebox cakes and homemade ice cream sandwiches. And there are all-American classics like strawberry shortcake, plus a few less-traditional versions (ultra-tender blackberry shortcakes, anyone?). Read on for our best cool, creamy, sweet, crumbly, flaky, and all-around festive desserts for the Fourth of July.
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Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Stevie Stewart2/41Blueberry Pie
For the best-textured, most vibrantly flavored blueberry pie, use every part of the lemon—skin, flesh, and all—in the filling.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Christopher Barsch3/41Chocolate–Peanut Butter Sheet Pan Ice Cream Sandwiches
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Stevie Stewart5/41Funnel Cakes
Bring the fairground home this Fourth of July with a platter of delightfully nostalgic, squiggly fried dough. The secret to the best funnel cakes? Skip the funnel.
Photo by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Liberty Fennell8/41Easy Blueberry Cobbler
You might associate freshly-grated nutmeg with the winter holidays (lookin’ at you, eggnog) but it brings intense depth and warmth to this summery blueberry cobbler. Use fresh or frozen blueberries in this vintage Gourmet recipe—either will work.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Micah Marie Morton9/41Double Ripple Ice Cream Cake
Ice cream cake may look fancy, but most of the work is in the assembly. This Fourth of July, follow our expert tips to construct the ice cream cake of your dreams.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich10/41Blackberry Shortcake
Trade strawberries for richly-hued blackberries in this fun twist on a seasonal classic. For exceptionally tender shortcakes, you’ll add a hard-boiled egg yolk to the dough.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Katherine Sacks13/41Vanilla-Buttermilk Layer Cake With Orange Frosting and Raspberries
This pretty layer cake would be wonderful for any occasion, but decorated with a handful of summer berries, it’s really the perfect dessert for the Fourth of July.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Michelle Gatton14/41Raspberry and Pistachio Ice Cream Icebox Cake
Photo by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Liberty Fennell15/41Cherry Pie
Classic cherry pie—not the gooey kind with filling from a can, but the perfect, sweet-tart kind that’s far more elusive—is about three things: the right cherries, flaky pastry, and vanilla ice cream. To that end, this version is the realest deal you’re going to find.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne17/41Elvis Presley’s Favorite Pound Cake
For a dessert you can enjoy all day, look no further than our go-to pound cake recipe—which also happens to be the favorite of noted fireworks fan, Elvis Presley.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Michelle Gatton18/41Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Bars
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Judy Haubert19/41Vegan Panna Cotta
This creamy, cooling, and entirely dairy-free panna cotta gets its Jello-like wobble not from gelatin, but from kuzu starch, a vegan thickening agent. Missing the dairy? Opt for a classic panna cotta instead.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Susan Kim20/41No-Bake Peach Cheesecake With Wheat Thins Crust
Skip the graham cracker crust and turn to a box of Wheat Thins for your pie base. The honeyed crackers bring just enough sweetness and saltiness to this no-bake dessert.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Kat Boytsova21/41Retro Strawberries-and-Cream Pretzel Tart
A pretzel crust, cream cheese filling, and strawberry-studded gelatin topper essentially make this a no-bake cheesecake recipe. Building it in a springform pan will let you show off its pretty layers, but a pie dish would work just as well.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich22/41Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie
If you’re lucky enough to snag some rhubarb stalks at the tail end of the season, use them in this crumb-topped strawberry-rhubarb number. Want something with a lower lift? Go for a rustic rhubarb crisp.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Samantha Seneviratne & Jason Schreiber23/41Pastel Butter Cookies
You can dye these buttery almond cookies red, white, and blue—or any other color—with the clever use of freeze-dried fruit: Simply grind blueberry, strawberry, or the hue/flavor of your choice with powdered sugar for coating.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Stevie Stewart24/41Fresh Strawberry Cake
Fresh strawberries are the star of this simple snacking cake, which we’d eat a slice of any day, any time. It’s one of our favorite Fourth of July recipes, right up there with red berry-striped white chocolate parfaits.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Beatrice Chastka, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell25/41Cranberry-Pistachio Baked Alaska
Underneath the toasted meringue, you’ll find cheery red cranberry sorbet, pale green pistachio ice cream, and buttery pound cake. Swap out the pistachio ice cream for a purply-blue blueberry ice cream to boost the red-white-and-blue vibes; and if you can’t find cranberry sorbet, watermelon, strawberry, or cherry would work well here too.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Kat Boytsova26/41Coconut Cream Pie
This old classic relies on a few tricks—toasted-coconut milk, gelatin, and whipped cream—to make the most ethereal pie imaginable. To make it extra-festive, top the pie with red and blue sprinkles.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Micah Marie Morton27/41Tres Leches Cake (Pastel de Tres Leches)
Imagine tres leches, but in layer cake form, sandwiched with fresh fruit and swathed in whipped cream. Now turn that dream into a reality with chef Fany Gerson's tres leches recipe.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Rhoda Boone28/41Mixed Berry Pie Bars
Why choose between pies, bars, and cookies when you can have pie-bar-cookies? Bursting with berries and wrapped in a flaky crust, this handheld pastry makes a great on-the-go treat. But it can also be dressed up with ice cream and fresh fruit for a pretty plated dessert.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Katherine Sacks29/41Lemon-Blueberry Poke Cake
Slice into this lemony cake—an internet sensation of several summers back—and you’ll be greeted with a surprise: bold stripes of bright blueberry filling.
Photo by Kimberley Hasselbrink31/41Summer Berry-Coconut Milk Ice Pops
Coconut milk makes these ice pops cool and creamy. It’s one easy dessert recipe we’re putting on repeat from Memorial Day through Labor Day.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Prop Styling by Anne Eastman, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich32/41Latticed Apple and Cranberry Tart
Celebrate Independence Day with a time-honored American classic, lattice-topped apple pie. Okay, this one’s technically a tart, and it has currants and cranberries for flair—if you prefer something more traditional, go with Our Favorite Apple Pie.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Katherine Sacks33/41Frozen Mini S'mores Pies
So you want s’mores, but you don’t want to build a campfire. We understand. That’s why we devised these frozen s’mores pies, complete with a toasted marshmallow-y meringue on top.
Photo by Emma Fishman, Food Styling by Kate Schmidt34/41Angel Food Cake
After a full meal of burgers, BBQ chicken, or whatever you’re cooking on the grill, choose a dessert that’s light as a cloud: this fluffy, ethereal angel food cake.
Photo by Jocelyn Delk Adams35/41Red Velvet Cake With Blackberry–Cream Cheese Whipped Frosting
Rich and juicy blackberries partner with a classic, mildly chocolaty red velvet cake in this absolute showstopper from baker Jocelyn Delk Adams. In fact, it’s the cover star of her cookbook, Grandbaby Cakes.
Photo by Alex Lau, Food Styling by Sue Li36/41Cherry Biscuit Cobbler
The cherry filling in this cobbler is intentionally juicy; the shortcake-inspired biscuit topping will soak up the extra liquid. (And it’ll seep beautifully into the vanilla ice cream you’re serving it with—right?)
Tara Donne37/41Red, White, and Blueberry Pie
Take the best parts of Key lime pie (the crust) and blueberry pie (the filling), and you’ll wind up with this all-star pie recipe. It looks classic, tastes classic, is easy to prepare, and goes well with any Fourth of July celebration or other special summer meal.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell38/41Strawberry Shortcake With Thyme and Whipped Cream
What’s better than strawberry shortcakes? (Honestly, nothing.) But this singular strawberry shortcake layer cake makes a good run for it. The genoise-style sponge is made with melted butter for a more tender, flavorful base, while fresh thyme adds an intriguing herby note.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, and Rhoda Boone39/41The Easiest Peach-Raspberry Pie With Press-In Crust
Hate fussing with pie crust? This press-in situation requires zero rolling and even less fuss. Remember to reserve some of the crumbly crust—it doubles as the topping.
