Categories Pastry Chef Articles
Mario Masiá explores the creative possibilities of the ice cream pan
Mario Masiá (Masiá Heladeros Artesanos, San Vicente del Raspeig, Spain)—runner-up in the 2016 Gelato World Cup and winner of the 2011 Spanish Championship—focuses in one of the most common formats: the pan, in our international ice cream magazine so cool.. magazine 3.
However, he approaches it from a different perspective. His three creations—Waves, Matsiro, and My Banoffee—demonstrate how this container can become more than just a vessel for storing and serving ice cream; it becomes a creative space where ice cream making, pastry arts, technique, and aesthetics converge.
A new style of pan: from container to creative format
The pans Masiá proposes do not merely present the product; they play with volume, texture, and narrative. Structurally, they utilize layered compositions to create distinct sensations upon slicing and on the palate. Flavors, aromas, and textures are carefully combined to offer a more complex and sophisticated tasting experience.
This format also expands consumption possibilities—serving as a shareable dessert, an ice cream cake, or a signature takeaway creation—thereby aligning ice cream making with the conventions of contemporary pastry arts.
Three ways to explore the format
Waves: a sculptural surface
Drawing inspiration from relief art, Masiá uses fondant in Waves, rather than limiting himself to piping, to create voluminous waves that transform the surface into a sculptural element. The composition combines toasted buckwheat ice cream, caramelized Williams pear, pineapple coulis, and a crunchy element, balancing intensity, sweetness, and acidity.
Here, the pan’s surface becomes a tool for expression: the fondant adds movement, volume, and personality, transcending its purely decorative function.
Check out the recipe in so cool… magazine 3
Matsiro: a layered pan
In Matsiro, the connection to pastry arts is particularly evident. Masiá combines single-origin chocolate with raw almond and amaretto ice cream, dacquoise, fig jam, and macadamia croustillant.
The components are arranged in layers, and the decoration, inspired by a mountain formation, enhances the visual dimension. The result is reminiscent of an ice cream cake and demonstrates how layering creates a depth that multiplies contrasts in texture and flavor.
Check out the recipe in so cool… magazine 3
My Banoffee: Dessert as Inspiration
For My Banoffee, Masiá begins with a dulce de leche and macadamia ice cream, translating key elements of the classic banoffee—biscuit, caramel, banana, and chocolate—into ice cream form.
A sheet of milk chocolate provides the crunch, while the overall composition recreates the experience of the original dessert without relying on internal marbling. This creation illustrates another approach: reinterpreting pastry classics and translating them into the language of ice cream through the use of layers, coatings, and textures.
Check out the recipe in so cool… magazine 3
