For the Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 325 F. Set aside all ingredients for the frosting so they will come to room temperature while you bake the cake. Grease two 6 inch or 8 inch cake pans. Place a round of parchment paper in the bottom, grease it and flour the entire pan. Set pans aside.
2. In a mixing bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together the melted butter, oil, buttermilk, whole milk, and eggs with the paddle attachment.
4. Running on the lowest speed, slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet, one cup at a time, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl half way through. Mix until just combined. Pour evenly into prepared cake pans.
5. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Bake cupcakes for about 20 minutes.

Chantilly Frosting

1. With the whisk attachment on your stand mixer, cream the butter, cream cheese, and mascarpone until light and fluffy. Then add the salt and confectioners sugar and mix to combine. Empty out and wash the bowl.
2. With a clean bowl and whip attachment, whip the heavy whipping cream just to stiff peaks.
3. With a large spatula, gently fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone cream cheese mixture until fully incorporated.

Berry Syrup

1. In a small pot, mix together the water, sugar and jam. Bring to a boil and cook for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture thickens slightly. Remove from heat and let cool.

Assembly

1. If making a 4 layer cake: Divide each cake layer in half horizontally, either with a serrated knife or floss. The first bottom layer of your cake should be the bottom of one of the original cakes, cut side up. Place this first layer onto either a cardboard cake round or a cake stand (whatever you’re going to serve it on.)
2. Spread a layer of the berry syrup on top of the first layer of cake, then pipe or spread a thin layer of icing on top of the berry syrup. Evenly distribute some berries on top of the icing layer.
3. Repeat this process, making sure to layer the cut sides of the cake up. Skip the berry syrup on the top layer.
4. Roughly spread the frosting all over the cake to create a crumb coating. Freeze the cake for at least 20 minutes or can be frozen up to overnight. Place the second decorative layer of icing over the cake and garnish with fresh berries on top, followed by a dusting of powdered sugar and mint leaves.