This easy red white and blue bundt cake recipe is the perfect patriotic dessert for your 4th of July celebrations. Made with boxed cake mix, food coloring, and a simple powdered guar glaze on top, every bite is flavorful, sweet, and a crowd-pleaser.
Firecracker bundt cake
This cake can often be found going by any number of names including fireworks bundt cake or firecracker cake, which are great names for the holiday celebrations but this cake neither contains explosives nor looks like a firecracker.
That said, a cake by any other name would be as sweet and whatever you choose to call this cake, you will know it’s going to be called delicious too.
Patriotic bundt cake ingredients
- Boxed yellow cake mix
- Eggs
- Oil
- Water
- Red and blue food coloring
- Powdered sugar
- Festive sprinkles *optional
What you’ll need to make this recipe
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- Measuring cups
- Mixing bowls
- Whisk
- Bundt cake pan
Tips for making 4th of July bundt cake
Making this cake is both fun and easy. It’s a simple boxed cake mix, so very little work is required. The hardest part is dividing up the batter and adding food coloring to get the shade you want. I recommend using gel food coloring as the colors are always much more vivid and you’ll need less gel to get a good color.
You can arrange the colored batters into the pan in any order that you want, just keep in mind that even if the batters are divided evenly, the bottom color (the one on the outside of the cake) will be the thinnest and the center is the biggest. This is just because of the pan shape and the way the batter expands as it cooks.
For another fun and creative way to prepare this cake, instead of pouring the batters into the pan, scoop it up with a 1/4 cup measure or large cookie scooper and scatter the batters throughout the pan. Then as it bakes it will have a nice marbled look and be much more sporadic and fun.
FAQ’s and tips
Yes, this cake can be made in advance! It can last for up to a week at room temperature in an airtight container or about the same length of time in the fridge too.
Absolutely! You can freeze this cake after it’s been iced or before. Keep in mind that if freezing after the cake has been iced, there will be some color bleeding from the icing as it thaws, but the cake will still look and taste pretty great. Keep it in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months and thaw it on the counter for a few hours until room temperature.
How to Make Patriotic Fireworks Bundt Cake
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large mixing bowl, prepare the boxed cake mix as requested per package with the eggs, water, and oil.
Divide the batter between three bowls and in one bowl add the red food coloring and in another add in blue coloring.
Prepare your bundt pan with cooking spray and flour to prevent sticking.
Pour one of the cake batters into the pan.
Pour another colored batter on top of the one in the pan aiming for the middle of the batter as you make a ring around the pan. Repeat with the last color.
Bake your cake in the oven for 35 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted and come out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes in the pan and flip onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Whisk together the icing ingredients (powdered sugar and water) in a bowl until smooth. divide the batter into three bowls and in one add red coloring and add blue coloring to another. Leave the third color white.
Pour each icing into a separate Ziploc bag and snip the corners. Drizzle each color over the top of the bundt cake and then top with sprinkles if desired.
Slice and serve.
More great recipes to try
- Applesauce Custard Pie
- Blueberry Cream Cheese Babka
- Frosted Hershey Cocoa Brownies
- Patriotic Cookie Cups
- Easy Butterscotch Apple Pie
- No Bake Cool Whip Cheesecake
- Mac and Cheese Quesadilla
Easy Patriotic Fireworks Bundt Cake
Ingredients
- 1 box Yellow or White Cake Mix
- 3 large Eggs
- 1 cup Water
- 1/3 cup Oil
- Red and Blue food coloring
Icing
- 1 cup Powdered sugar
- 1 Tbsp Warm water
- Red and Blue food coloring
- Festive Sprinkles *optional
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- Prepare your boxed cake mix with eggs, water, and oil as per package instructions in a large mixing bowl.
- Divide the batter between three bowls. In one of the bowls, add in the red food coloring and mix until well blended. Do the same with the blue food coloring in another bowl and leave the third one plain.
- In a bundt pan, grease and lightly flour the inside to prevent sticking.
- Pour one of your cake batters into the pan.
- Take another color and pour it into the pan, right in the middle of the batter below it. Repeat with the last batter too.
- Bake your bundt cake in the oven for about 35 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted and come out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes in the pan before flipping onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- In a bowl, whisk toghether the powderd sugar and warm water until smooth. Divide into three bowls and add red coloring to one, blue coloring to another, and leave the third white.
- Scoop each icing into a Ziploc bag and snip a corner. Drizzle each color of icing over the top of the bundt cake. Top with festive sprinkles if desired.
- Serve your cake and enjoy.
