-
1
Heat the oven to 175 °C. Roast the pumpkin or sweet potato whole, or in large pieces, until entirely soft throughout — a skewer should meet no resistance anywhere in the flesh. Remove from the oven and allow to cool enough to handle.
-
2
Scoop the flesh from the skin and pass it through a sieve into a bowl. Transfer the sieved purée to a clean sieve set over a bowl and leave to drain for a minimum of one hour. This is where the dish lives or dies: insufficient draining leaves the mixture too wet to hold its shape in the oven, and the cones will not set.
-
3
Grind the whole blanched almonds to a fine meal in a food processor or by hand. Combine the drained pumpkin or sweet potato with the ground almonds, sugar, eggs, cinnamon, lemon zest, and saffron strands if using. Mix until fully combined. The paste should be thick and hold a shape when pressed — not slack or pourable.
-
4
Line a baking sheet with parchment. With damp hands, shape the mixture into cones approximately the size of a small pear. Set them upright or slightly inclined on the sheet, ensuring each cone holds its form without slumping.
-
5
Bake at 175 °C for 20–25 minutes. The arnadí is ready when the surface is lightly caramelised and just firm to a light press at the widest point — the interior remains dense and moist. The shape must be fully held; a collapsing cone indicates under-baking.