5 Irresistible Red, White and Blue Desserts

The Fourth of July is celebrated with bright colors. In some cases, these bright colors come in the form of fireworks and sparklers, lighting up the air with explosions of color. In other cases, these bright colors come in the form of red, white and blue decorations. This is one holiday that I pay close attention to the colors of the ingredients I’m working with – and usually break out the food coloring for – so that I can put together some brightly colored desserts that are the perfect compliment to any fireworks display or Fourth of July celebration.

• Fourth of July Cupcakes are one easy way to celebrate the holiday. These cupcakes start off as plain vanilla cupcakes, but the batter is divided into thirds and portions are tinted with red and blue food coloring. The three colors of batter are layered in cupcake wrappers, creating a beautifully layered finished dessert. Garnish a vanilla buttercream with blueberries and strawberries and you have a red, white and blue topping for these cupcakes, too!
• Red, White and Blue Whoopie Pies are similar to the cupcakes, in that they have layers of cake and frosting. The cake portions of these handheld pies are colored with red and blue, while the vanilla buttercream sandwiched between them remains white. These are even easier to serve at a picnic than cupcakes are, and are always a hit with both adults and kids alike.

• Red, White and Blue Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries require no baking and take full advantage of one of summer’s best fruits. To make these, you simply dip perfectly ripe strawberries into melted white chocolate, then dip the tip of the berry into blue sugar. The process is easy, and the results are showstopping.
  
• Red, White and Blue Berry Yogurt Cake is a dessert that has bright colors with no food coloring. The moist, white cake is studded with fresh raspberries and blueberries that give it pops of color when you look at the cake and pops of flavor as you eat a slice. The blueberries inside of the cake take on a slightly purple hue when baked, but topping the cake with more fresh berries will drive home the red, white and blue color combination.
• Mixed Berry Ricotta Babycakes are another dessert where the red, white and blue colors come from fruit. These single-serving cheesecakes are packed with a mixture of raspberries, blueberries and blackberries, for bright berry colors on a white background. They’re surprisingly light, and they’re much easier to make than a full sized cheesecake – not to mention easier to store and serve in hot weather.