Synonym Magazine Issue 5: Sweets

From the creators of Synonym Magazine:

Who doesn’t love a sweet treat? Whether tart, not-too-sweet, or nutty, they all fit the bill.

We trace the lineage of delicately fried, flower-shaped sweets—from buñuelos to kokis to rozetten; same, same but different—written by Emilia Igartua Vellatti. We follow conchas to pineapple buns to melon pans, breads that became records of colonial influence, war, and cultural exchange through migration. Lina Saad traces how knafeh is eaten differently from the UK to Lebanon and from day to night. Toyo Odetunde writes about how West African sweets have been all but forgotten as generations moved from Nigeria to London, and how the city’s restaurants are bringing them back in their newest iteration. Patricia Kelly Yeo writes about dessert soups, and why these warm Asian desserts have yet to cross the continents into American culture.

We wouldn’t be us if we didn’t have the eye candy to go with all these tasty word morsels. Featuring art and photography by Azra Hirji, Camilo Huinca, Nick Iluzada, Yossy Arefi, Johnathan Barragán López, Diana Caballero, and many more.

Synonym Magazine is a biannual print magazine covering the global immigrant diaspora through the lens of food and art. We spotlight these immigrant stories and share how trade, politics, colonialism, and capitalism have changed food cultures around the world. We delve into how all of this creates a new heritage, culture, and traditions for immigrants and countries’ natives alike.