This Vegan Flag Cake features a fluffy vegan vanilla sheet cake and is topped with cream cheese frosting and fresh fruit, of course! This cake is so fun and is the perfect patriotic dish for the Fourth of July. BONUS: It’s made in 1 bowl!
This flag cake has been a tradition in our home for many, many years now. I’ve been making it since my twins were 2 years old, and they’re now 10 so I guess about 8 years! On another note, why do kids have to grow up so quickly? Geez. Slow down already!
Anyhow, our family doesn’t care for fireworks or even staying up super late on the Fourth, but one thing we always do is make this flag cake. My kids LOVE putting the fruit on the top just right. That means the cake doesn’t always look as good as it does in the photos, but it comes close! I love family traditions, and this is one of my favorites.
This Vegan Flag Cake reminds me of strawberry shortcake. The frosting is just to die for, so try not to spoon it all into your mouth before you even frost the cake ( I definitely didn’t do that….)!
The cake is make with whole wheat pastry flour. The stuff is great for baked goods because it really resembles the lightness of all purpose white flour, but it’s whole grain. I use it a lot for pancakes, cakes, cupcakes, muffins and cookies. Plus it’s super cheap in the bulk bins, but you can always substitute with all purpose flour or gluten free if you want.
The cream cheese frosting is delicious, but if you wanted an easier alternative and you have a store that carries it, you can also use So Delicious Coco Whip. I’ve done that before and it’s pretty tasty!
The other great thing about this flag cake: It’s made using just 1 bowl! I’m all about easy dessert recipes, and I love making things as simple as possible.
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If you make this recipe, let me know how it goes! Rate it, leave a comment and tag a photo @noracooksvegan on Instagram. Enjoy!
1 Bowl Vegan Flag Cake
Ingredients
Vanilla Cake
- 1 1/3 cups almond milk, unsweetened
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup canola oil or melted coconut oil
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour OR all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 ounce vegan cream cheese (or 1 cup)
- 1/2 cup vegan butter, softened at room temperature Earth Balance, either from the tub or the stick
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
Other
- 1/2-1 cup fresh blueberries
- 2 cups sliced strawberries
Instructions
For the Vanilla Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and lightly grease or spray a 13 by 9 inch cake pan.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond milk and vinegar. Let sit for 1 minute to curdle.
- Now add the oil, sugar and vanilla. Whisk to combine.
- Measure the flour and add on top of the wet mixture. Now sprinkle on the baking powder and salt. Mix with a wooden spoon until the batter is smooth. Do not over mix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean and the cake is just a little golden on top.
- Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting. Wipe the bowl out for the frosting, or rinse quickly and dry.
For the Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting:
- In the same bowl you used for the cake, add the softened vegan butter and vegan cream cheese. Beat with a hand mixer until creamy, smooth and well combined.
- Add the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until thick and spreadable and to the amount of sweetness you desire. Store in the fridge until you are ready to frost the cake.
Assembling the Cake
- Once it has cooled completely, frost the cake, using as much frosting as you desire. I used all the frosting!
- Now comes the fun: Carefully place the blueberries and sliced strawberries on the cake, making a flag design. See the pictures above.
- Serve and enjoy! Store any extra cake in the fridge for 2 days, if it lasts that long.
Notes
- If you are using coconut oil, you may need to warm your almond milk for a minute before using, so the coconut oil doesn't thicken when it hits the milk.
- May substitute gluten free or all purpose flour for the whole wheat pastry flour if needed or desired. I don't recommend using regular whole wheat flour, as it's too heavy.
- May also use So Delicious Coco Whip instead of the Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting if desired. You will need 1 container.
I’ve always wanted to make a flag cake for the 4th of July, and I’m so glad I found this recipe! The cake is delicious- very moist and fluffy. I made a buttercream with vegan butter instead of a cream cheese frosting, simply because that is what my family prefers. One of my children told me that I should make this cake for every 4th of July!
This cake is a really fun tradition! I’m glad you guys loved the cake! Thank you for sharing your great feedback!
This cake was KILLER! I read the reviews before making it and saw that some people had trouble with the cake rising, so I figured they had probably over mixed the cake. I decided to blend the dry ingredients together before putting them into the wet. The cake rose beautifully. The whole family loved it and it was so easy! Thanks, Nora!
You are welcome! I’m thrilled the cake was wonderful for you! Thanks for sharing your feedback and idea! Happy baking!
I love this recipe and I’ve made it a few times my only complaint is that it doesn’t seem like enough batter to fill a 13 x 9 cake pan. My cake always comes out being super thin I’m almost wondering if I need to use a smaller pan?
Hmmm it’s not the tallest cake but it should not be super thin either, it’s like the photos, maybe 3 inches high. Do you make any substitutions like with the flour or anything? I use a 9×13 inch pan.
What do you think about using some Bob’s Redmill Egg Replacer in this this recipe? Would it add any value to the overall baked cake?
I don’t think it’s necessary because the mix of vinegar and baking soda produces a light and fluffy cake on its own. You could always try making two cakes (with and without the egg replacer) and see which one you like better!
My cake didn’t rise. I tried to not overmix, but there were so many lumps.
I fear this is one of the reasons it was so dense. Not your fault. The flavors were great. I’ll have to try this again.
The chocolate cake is the best cake recipe I’ve ever made/tasted and that goes for non-vegan too. Any suggestions on fluffier cake is welcome and yes, I used new baking powder. 😉
I’m sorry to hear that your cake didn’t rise and was dense! Let’s see… I have noticed that coconut oil tends to make cakes a bit denser, usually, so try to use canola oil or another oil. That said, sometimes I do use coconut oil and it’s fine… Make sure you aren’t measuring too much flour (and use white for best results). Cake flour is always an option for making cakes lighter and fluffier, it just can be a little hard to find. Hope that helps!
Hi I’m not sure what happened with my previous comment, but I’m wondering if there is nutritional info available for the sheet cake only not including the icing. Thanks
I don’t currently have the information for the cake without the frosting, sorry! You would have to punch the ingredients into an online calculator. Not sure what happened to your first comment either, I don’t see one!
Wow! This was super delicious! I really loved the design. The only thing was that the frosting wasn’t as white as I thought it would be and I basically made double the frosting that I needed. Overall, LOVED this recipe.
Could I use raspberries instead of strawberries? do you think it would look weird?
No, I think that would be just fine. Hope you enjoy!
This recipe is so simple and absolutely delicious. Would recommend for any party ?
Thank you!
I’m trying to make a strawberry shortcake for my brother who likes “wetter cakes” and not the biscuit versions. I want to use this cake recipe as a bases along with Coco Whip. Do you think it would work?
Yes I think it would work very well!
Could I make this using oat milk instead of almond milk?
Yes any non-dairy milk will work here. Thanks!
Thanks for a fun and yummy recipe!