4th of July cake balls are the perfect patriotic treat to celebrate America's Independence Day! These delicious, bite-sized cake truffles are made with moist red, white, and blue cake crumbs mixed with cream cheese and coated in bright colored candy melts.
Whether you're looking for a crowd-pleasing dessert or a tasty homemade gift, these star-spangled cake balls are sure to delight any one. Looking for more? You should also try our 4th of July dipped Oreos! Those are always a hit!
Red white and blue cake balls for the 4th of July
When it comes to 4th of July desserts, few treats are as festive and fun as these red, white, and blue cake balls. Well maybe these patriotic Rice Krispie treats are, but….
I love that cake balls are relatively easy to make and are guaranteed to be a hit at any fourth of July party or backyard barbecue.
These marble cake balls are festive and fun, and are a sure and great way to show off your patriotism while satisfying your sweet tooth.
Recipe Highlights
These are incredibly easy to make, even for beginner bakers.
The vibrant red, white, and blue colors make them an instant crowd-pleaser at any 4th of July gathering.
They're the ultimate portable dessert, perfect for picnics, barbecues, and potlucks.
It’s a fun way to get everyone involved in a family activity especially the kids.
Ingredients
- White cake mix
- Eggs
- Oil
- Water
- Cream cheese
- Vanilla melting wafers
- Red candy melts
- Blue candy melts
- Red, blue and white sprinkles
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- Mixing bowls
- Piping bags
How to make 4th of July cake balls
This is an overview of the recipe with step by step photos. Scroll down to end of post for a printable recipe card with the amount of ingredients and full recipe instructions.
Mix the cake mix with eggs, water and oil to form the batter.
Divide the batter equally into 3 mixing bowls. Color the batter of two out of the three bowls with food coloring. One with red, the other with blue. Leave the third one plain.
Transfer to a baking dish and bake according to package instructions. When cake is baked, let it cool then crumble each colored care individually.
Whip the softened cream cheese till smooth, divide it into 3 before adding each third to a bowl of crumbled cake. Mix to combine.
Scoop about a teaspoon full each of each color into your palm and roll it together to form a ball. Place ball on a baking sheet and repeat process until all the crumbled cake has been rolled into balls.
Place the baking sheet in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hrs so that the cake balls can chill. This helps them retain their shape.
20 mins to when the chill time is over, melt the melting wafers in a double boiler on low heat stirring frequently till fully melted.
Place the cake balls one at a time on a fork and dip into the melts. Tap the fork on the side of the bowl to remove excess coating.
Place dipped cake balls on the baking sheet. Add the sprinkles to some of the cake balls right after dipping. When all the cake balls are dipped, put the red and blue candy melts in two separate piping bags and melt in the microwave at 30 secs intervals massaging the bag in between intervals until fully melted.
Snip off the tip of the piping bags and pipe some stripes on the cake balls that have no sprinkles.
Transfer to the refrigerator to chill for 15 mins before serving.
How to make cake pops
Cake pops need extra steps than cake balls but are also easy to make. Follow the steps below to make these adorable cake balls into 4th of July cake pops.
Repeat image steps 1 to 13 above. Then dip ½ inch of the lollipop stick into the melts. Push it in gently ½ way into the chilled cake balls before dipping into the melts.
Tap off excess coating gently before inserting into cake pop stand (👈 affiliate link) or styrofoam. When you are done let it chill for about 15 mins in the refrigerator to set.
Variations
You can customize the flavors of the cake to suit your taste preferences, from classic vanilla to rich chocolate or tangy lemon. There’s no rule that says lemon cakes are only for lemon cake balls or chocolate or brownies are only for brownie balls 😉 You can crumble any cake flavor and decorate it with red white and blue candy melts including a funfetti cake.
For a fun twist, try turning your 4th of July cake balls into cake pops! Simply insert a lollipop stick into each ball before coating them in the candy shell. More details can be found above!
How to store
These patriotic cake balls can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Helpful Tips
- Use a high-quality candy coating for the smoothest, shiniest results.
- Work quickly when coating the cake balls to prevent the candy from hardening too soon.
- Experiment with different cake and frosting flavors to find your favorite combination.
More 4th of July recipes you’ll love
- Patriotic Jell-O shot
- Fourth of July poke cake
- Check out all our Home Cooked Recipes
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Red, white and blue cake balls
Equipment
- Baking pan
- 1.5” cookie scoop
- Baking trays
- Double boiler (or microwave)
Ingredients
The cake
- 15.25 ounce White Cake Mix
- Red and blue food color
- 8 ounce block cream cheese softened to room temperature
For decorating
- 10 oz bag Ghirardelli vanilla melting wafers
- ½ cup red candy melts
- ½ cup blue candy melts
- Red, white and blue sprinkles mix
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and grease three 8 inch cake pans
- Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Mix the cake mix according to the package instructions to form a batter
- Divide cake batter into 3 bowls. Color 2 bowls red and blue, leaving 1 plain.
- Bake the colored batter in the 3 different cake pans according to cake mix instructions. When baked, let them cool completely and crumble each color separately.
- Whip cream cheese until smooth. Divide into 3 portions and mix each into a crumbled cake color.
- Scoop teaspoon-sized portions of each color into your palm and roll together into balls. Place cake balls in a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- Refrigerate cake balls 1-2 hours until firm. Chilling helps them hold their shape for dipping.
- Transfer melting wafers to a microwave safe container and microwave at 30 seconds intervals stirring in between each interval until full melted.
- Place a chilled cake ball on fork and dip into the coating, tapping off excess. For some balls, add sprinkles right after dipping while coating is wet so they stick.
- Pour the red and blue candy melts separately into two piping bags. Microwave at 30 secs intervals massaging the bag in between intervals until fully melted. Snip off the tip and pipe stripes on cake balls without sprinkles.
- Chill coated balls for about 10 to 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
- You can use any flavor of cake mix including a brownie mix.
- Chilling the cake balls before dipping is important to help the cake balls keep their shape.
- Handle the cake balls gently when coating to prevent crumbling.
- Melting chocolate requires low, even heat to stay smooth.
- Substitute the cream cheese for homemade or store-bought frosting.
Sherry says
What a fun 4th of July recipe to make! My kids are going to love when I bring these to their party. Thank you for a great cake ball recipe! I am also going to use this method for other events such as baby showers, Christmas, and Thanksgiving!