A new tradition: Macaron Monday!

Is there such a thing as a special day to enjoy a good Macaron?

I would say Mondays! If there is one day of the week when we need a snack from heaven to cheer us up, it is the famed Monday, which has the misfortune of following the relaxed weekend and therefore is my least favorite of all. Monday reminds us that we have to get back to the chores we left pending from work, run to drop the kids off at school before they close the door, run errands, and combine it all with the feeling that we didn't get enough rest over the weekend. And it's always like that, the weekend feels too fast, and we leave the burden of our Sunday exhaustion to poor Monday.

Nevertheless, we have this little sweet treat to lift our Monday spirits. I call it Macaroon Monday.

These little works of pastry art are forged with an almond paste base and cream filling. The versatility offered by this dessert is so great that it gives rise to the widest range of human creativity. I have seen macaroons with exotic and different flavors (like the avocado and bean macaroon) to summer varieties like the macaroon glace.

The truth is that although there is no specific day to delight us with this bocato di cardinale, I invite you to try it one morning, whichever is your favorite one, with a delicious cup of coffee or tea, and enjoy the good Monday. The day t in which we have the opportunity to start again!

Here is my recipe:

For the macaroons:

• Powdered sugar

• Almond flour, blanched

• Egg whites

• Granulated sugar

• Cream of Tartar

• Vanilla Extract

• Pink gel coloring

Procedure:

1. Prepare a sheet pan with a macarons silicone mat

2. Prepare a piping bag with an 807 piping tip

3. Grind the almond flour and powdered sugar in the grinder and put them in a separate bowl

4. Pour the cream tartar and the egg whites into the bowl of the stand mixer and start whipping at medium-high speed until getting a foamy texture

5. Add the granulated sugar slowly at low speed, and once incorporated, increase the speed to medium-high and then high until getting firm peaks

6. Transfer this merengue to a separate bowl

7. Add the mixture of almond flour with powdered sugar in 3 stages and use the J folding technique to incorporate the meal with the meringue, making sure everything is incorporated and well combined but being careful to maintain the fluffiness of the meringue

8. Add the vanilla and pink coloring

9. Use the spatula to take the mixture from the bottom to the edge as if forming a flower, and then test how fast the mixture would go down the bottom. I did this 3 times until I saw the batter would move fast enough, but it was not liquidy.

10. Pour the batter into the piping bag and start piping the batter in a round.

11. Once all cookies were pipped, press the sheet pan three times so the batter would settle and let them dry for a total of 30 minutes until the cookies were firm.

12. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

13. Place the cookies in the oven and bake them for 14 minutes. If you notice the cookies need a little extra time, do so, but monitor them.

For the French Buttercream filling:

• Granulated sugar

• Water

• Egg yolks

• Butter in cubes at room temperature

• Vanilla Extract

Procedure:

1. Place the egg yolks in the mixer bowl, and using the whip attachment, whip them at medium-high speed until pale yellow, light, soft and fluffy (I left them at medium speed while the sugar cooked).

2. Place the water and then the sugar at medium heat in a medium-sized bowl. Brush the edges with water to prevent crystallization and, using a probe thermometer, get the sugar to the soft bowl stage, reaching 241 degrees F.

3. Lower the speed to low at the stand mixer and start adding the sugar on the side of the bowl slowly.

4. When finished, whip them at medium-high speed until getting a nice soft texture.

5. Add the butter in 3 stages at low speed, and once incorporated, at medium-high speed first and then at high speed until the buttercream is silky, soft, and with no lumps.

6. Place it in the refrigerator until ready to use.

7. Once you are ready to assemble the macaroons, prepare a bain Marie by placing the buttercream inside the bowl of the mixer and then the bowl on the bain Marie. Once the buttercream melts a little bit, transfer it to the bowl to the stand mixer and whip the cream at medium-high speed until it recovers its texture.

Macaroons... Assemble!

1. Match the cookies with ones with the same or similar shape and place one downwards to pipe in it.

2. Prepare a piping bag with an 805 piping tip and pour the buttercream inside.

3. Pipe the buttercream on the downward cookies, using a circular movement from the outside to the center, leaving enough space on the edges.

4. Once all of the downward cookies were piped, sandwich them with the other cookie carefully, so the top would not crack, and make sure the cream spread to the edge of the cookies.

5. Place on a plate.

6. You are ready to enjoy!!