Instructions

1. First, make the cake. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line the bottom of three 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper and grease the sides with cooking spray. Set aside.
2. In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the butter, oil, and granulated sugar on medium speed until the mixture is light, fluffy and turns a very pale yellow color, about 2 minutes.
3. Use a silicone spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, then add the almond filling, eggs, almond extract and vanilla. Beat on medium-high speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed.
4. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, alternate adding in the dry ingredients and the milk in 3 additions (you’ll add half the dry, then all of the wet, then the other half of the dry). It’s okay if the batter still has a few lumps in it–you don’t want to overmix.
5. Divide the batter evenly into 3 medium size bowls. Add the red food coloring to one of the bowls, the green food coloring to one of the bowls and leave the third bowl uncolored. Stir the food coloring in to combine.
6. Transfer to the red, green and white cake batters to the three prepared pans and bake until the cakes has risen, the tops springs back to the touch, and a butter knife inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Place the cake pans on a cooling rack and allow them to cool slightly before removing from the pan to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
7. While the cakes are cooling, make your ganache. Finely chop the chocolate and place in a large mixing bowl. In a separate, microwave safe bowl microwave the heavy cream until scalding. Pour the cream over the chopped chocolate and allow to sit for 3 minutes. Use a rubber spatula to fold the chocolate and cream together until the chocolate is fully melty and the mixture forms a glossy ganache. If the chocolate is not fully melted, place in the microwave for 10 seconds to warm it up. Cover and place in the fridge to chill for just about 30 minutes- you want the mixture to become firm enough that it holds its shape when you drag a spoon into it, but not so firm that it becomes solid.
8. Once the ganache is chilled, you can begin to assemble the cake. Use a large serrated knife to carefully cut each cake layer into two equal halves. You should now have 2 red layers, 2 green layers and 2 white layers.
9.  Place one red layer onto a serving plate and top with 1/4 cup the raspberry jam, using an offset spatula to spread the jam evenly to the edges. Alternate the cake layers red, white, green, spreading 1/4 cup of jam between each layer.
10. Use a large offset spatula to cover the whole outside of the cake in chocolate ganache. Allow the ganache to further set for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving!