Ina's flag cake

Every 4th of July I make some dessert with berries. I've often made French tarts. Last year, I made a version of this cake, but instead of making the cake I made a large sugar cookie cake using store-bought dough (a quicker version). This year I opted to make Ina's full-fledged recipe. Without fail, you make something with loads of berries on top, everyone ooh's and ahh's. As much as I love the praise (I mean, really, who doesn't), I really cannot take the credit. I could make the same dessert, without the berries, and yes, it might taste good, but it surely wouldn't solicit the same behavior from my guests. So to give praise where it is due...thank you God for those amazing berries....they sure do make a beautiful and marvelous dessert!

This recipe is from Barefoot Contessa Family Style.

18 T (2 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 C sugar
6 eggs, room temp
1 C sour cream, room temp
1 1/2 t vanilla
3 C flour
1/3 C cornstarch
1 t salt
1 t baking soda
blueberries & raspberries

For the icing:
1 lb (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp
1 1/2 lbs cream cheese, room temp
1 lb powdered sugar
1 1/2 t vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Butter and flour 18x12x1 1/2 inch sheet pan.

Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs on medium 2 at a time. Add sour cream and vanilla.

Sift together flour, cornstarch, salt and baking soda. With mixer on low, add to the butter mixture. Pour into pan. Bake 20-30 minutes. Cool.

For the icing, combine ingredients and mix until smooth.

Spread 3/4s of icing on top of cake. Fill the upper left corner with blueberries. Place two rows of rasberries across the top of the cake like a red stripe. Put the remaining icing in a pastry bag fitted with a star tip and pipe a row of white icing underneath the raspberries. Alternate rows of raspberries and icing. Pipe stars on top of the blueberries.