This Red White and Blue Zinger Cake is covered in shredded coconut and filled with a marshmallow cream to make the BEST 4th of July dessert recipe!  

Red, White, and Blue Zinger Cake | This patriotic cake is the BEST 4th of July dessert recipe, Memorial Day dessert recipe, or Labor Day dessert recipe. This easy Red, White, and Blue Zinger cake is covered in shredded coconut and filled with a marshmallow cream to make a beautiful red, white, and blue dessert for the 4th of July!Summer is flying by isn’t it?! I just got an email from our city’s fireworks committee about when this year’s 4th of July celebration will be. The 4th of July is a big deal at my house and big deals mean celebrating with delicious cakes like this Red, White, and Blue Zinger Cake! Just look at those red, white, and blue layers. It’s going to be the BEST 4th of July dessert!

Red, White, and Blue Zinger Cake | This patriotic cake is the BEST 4th of July dessert recipe, Memorial Day dessert recipe, or Labor Day dessert recipe. This easy Red, White, and Blue Zinger cake is covered in shredded coconut and filled with a marshmallow cream to make a beautiful red, white, and blue dessert for the 4th of July!

Melinda came up with this cake after seeing a raspberry zinger cake recipe online. If you don’t know what a Zinger is it’s an American snack cake made by Hostness. It comes in  devil’s food, vanilla, and raspberry flavors and all of them are filled with a vanilla cream. When Melinda say that raspberry zinger cake she immediately wanted to turn it into a patriotic red, white, and blue cake. I’m not gonna lie, I was a little skeptical right up to the point where we cut into it and I took my first bite. It looks so awesome when you cut a slice. The red white and blue lines show up so clearly, and it tastes amazing! Like, I should have just tried a few bites but I ended up eating a whole piece kind of yum!

Red, White, and Blue Zinger Cake | This patriotic cake is the BEST 4th of July dessert recipe, Memorial Day dessert recipe, or Labor Day dessert recipe. This easy Red, White, and Blue Zinger cake is covered in shredded coconut and filled with a marshmallow cream to make a beautiful red, white, and blue dessert for the 4th of July!

The Red, White, and Blue Zinger cake recipe is pretty simple but it takes a little bit of time so I suggest making it the day before. The cake batter is just a doctored up boxed cake mix with a little powdered vanilla pudding and an extra egg to make it extra moist. Once the cake has baked let it cool completely. While it’s cooling you can chop up some sweetened coconut flakes, pulsing them in a blender with a little cornstarch to help them stick together less. Set that to the side and about 15 minutes before the cakes are done cooling make red and blue gelatin. I used raspberry and blue raspberry but you can use any flavors you like as long as they are red and blue. Make the gelatin and pour it into a large flat pan to cool. Whatever container you use you’re going to want to make sure your cake will fit in it because we’re going to be dipping the cake in the gelatin. I used two large brownie pans. The gelatin then goes in the fridge to thicken up. You want it to be thick so it coats the cake but don’t let it solidify. We put ours in the fridge for about 15 – 20 minutes and that was long enough.

When the gelatin comes out of the fridge the fun begins. This can get a little messy so prepare yourself (or wear gloves). Take out a cookie sheet and sprinkle it with half of the shredded coconut. Then take one of the cakes and dip it into the red gelatin. Do the top, then flip it over and do the bottom then gently roll the sides in it. Once it’s coated lay it on the coconut flakes top down and then flip it back over and use your hands to coat the top and sides with coconut. Don’t worry if it doesn’t stick to the sides great. Just press as much in as you can and don’t worry about it. Repeat with the second cake and the blue gelatin and place both in the fridge for about 10 minutes to let them firm up a little.

Red, White, and Blue Zinger Cake | This patriotic cake is the BEST 4th of July dessert recipe, Memorial Day dessert recipe, or Labor Day dessert recipe. This easy Red, White, and Blue Zinger cake is covered in shredded coconut and filled with a marshmallow cream to make a beautiful red, white, and blue dessert for the 4th of July!

While the cakes are in the fridge make the frosting. It’s a simple marshmallow cream that is totally delicious. Mix the ingredients up and put the frosting in a piping bag before placing it in the fridge to cool for 10 minutes. You don’t have to do this step but our frosting ran more than we wanted so we found that cooling it helped it stay in place better. When it has firmed up a little (you still want it to come out of the piping bag easily) you can take the cakes out of the middle and assemble your Red, White, and Blue Zinger cake. The frosting only goes in the middle so draw a circle on top of the blue cake, fill it in with frosting and place the red cake on top. Then wrap it in plastic wrap and place the zinger cake in the refrigerator overnight or for at least 2 hours.

Servings: 20
Prep Time: 2 hours
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 40 minutes

Red White and Blue Zinger Cake

This beautiful Red White and Blue Zinger Cake makes an amazing 4th of July dessert!
Red, White, and Blue Zinger Cake | This patriotic cake is the BEST 4th of July dessert recipe, Memorial Day dessert recipe, or Labor Day dessert recipe. This easy Red, White, and Blue Zinger cake is covered in shredded coconut and filled with a marshmallow cream to make a beautiful red, white, and blue dessert for the 4th of July!
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Ingredients

Cake

  • 15.5 oz cake mix, (boxed cake mix)
  • 3.4 oz Vanilla instant pudding, (1 small box)
  • 4 Eggs
  • 1/2 c Vegetable Oil
  • 1 c Water

Red and Blue Gelatin Coating:

  • 3 oz Raspberry Gelatin, (1 small box)
  • 3 oz Berry Blue Gelatin, (1 small box)
  • 4 c Boiling water

Coconut Topping

  • 2 c Sweetened Shredded Coconut
  • 2 Tbsp Cornstarch

Frosting

  • 8 Tbsp Butter, , softened
  • 1/4 c Heavy cream
  • 1 tsp Vanilla extract
  • 7 oz Marshmallow creme
  • 3 c Powdered sugar

Instructions

Cake

  • Preheat oven to 325°F.
  • In a large bowl combine all cake ingredients and mix on high for 2 minutes.
  • Split batter evenly between two prepared 9-inch cake pans.
  • Bake at 325°F for 35 - 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  • Remove from oven and let cool completely.

Red and Blue Gelatin Coating

  • 20 minutes before the cake has finished cooling bring 2 cups of water to a boil.
  • Remove from heat and add raspberry gelatin stirring until dissolved.
  • Pour into large shallow pan and place in refrigerator until it begins to thicken, about 20 minutes. (don’t let it solidify!)
  • Repeat the process with the berry blue gelatin.

Coconut Topping

  • Toss sweetened shredded coconut with cornstarch until lightly coated.
  • Pulse the shredded coconut in a food processor with the cornstarch to  chop it up slightly. 

Frosting

  • In a large bowl combine butter, heavy cream, and vanilla extract.
  • Mix the ingredients until they are smooth.
  • Add marshmallow cream to the bowl and continue to mix until fully combined.
  • Add powdered sugar a cup at a time until fully incorporated and light and fluffy.
  • Place frosting in a pastry bag.
  • Place in refrigerator to let it firm up for about 15-20 minutes. You still want it to easily come out of the pastry bag.

Assembly

  • Place half of the shredded coconut on a baking sheet.
  • Take the cooled cake and thickened gelatin and dip top bottom and sides of one cake in the raspberry gelatin.
  • Place the cake top down on the shredded coconut then turn over and press the coconut into the sides and top of the cake.
  • Repeat steps with second cake and the berry blue gelatin.
  • Place cake pieces back in the fridge for 15-20 minutes.
  • Once the cakes have chilled slightly place blue cake layer on a flat surface and use a pastry bag to create a layer of frosting on top.
  • Place red layer on top of the frosting.
  • Refrigerate until ready to serve.
  • Enjoy!

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice, Calories: 446kcal, Carbohydrates: 72g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Cholesterol: 53mg, Sodium: 508mg, Potassium: 27mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 56g, Vitamin A: 400IU, Calcium: 150mg, Iron: 0.5mg
Nutrition Disclaimer: We are not certified nutritionists. Nutrition facts are an estimate and are provided as a courtesy. They are generated by an online API which recognizes ingredient names and amounts and makes calculations based on the serving size. Results may vary.
Author: Kat Jeter & Melinda Caldwell

I can’t wait to serve my Red, White, and Blue Zinger cake as my 4th of July dessert! I may even put some sparklers in it for the full patriotic cake effect. Sparklers or no sparklers I know this cake is going to disappear fast!

If you’re looking for other great 4th of July recipes try these!

Summer Fruit Salsa

Blueberries, apples, and strawberries make up this light and fresh summer fruit salsa. It is perfect side dish or dessert recipe for Memorial Day, 4th of July, and Labor Day cookouts with it’s beautiful red, white, and blue colors and served with crisp, sweet, cinnamon chips shaped like stars.

Red White and Blue Cupcakes in a Jar

I love food in a jar! These cupcakes in a jar are a simple Memorial day or 4th of July recipe. Mason jar desserts are great for picnics or BBQs.