How Does Your Gut Shape Your Emotions About Food and Design?

Do you ever crave food? What happens in our minds and bodies that we desire chocolate, and parmesan cheese dip with toasted slices of warm bread?

Signature Kitchen Suite Parmesan dip is the bomb! Credit: Susie Feia

Last week I was faced with many cravings thanks to Signature Kitchen Suite (SKS) and Modenus’ Designhounds. I was at the Signature Kitchen Suite Experience and Design center in Napa, California, a memorable week of education, learning, amazing events, delicious food, and wine! Chef Nick helped us prepare many different recipes with their innovative SKS appliances. When I took my first bite into those seared sous vide scallops below, my brain took in information ( POW!! ) thru all my senses – sight, smell, taste, sound, touch and communicated the yumminess to my brain and gut.

Signature Kitchen Suite Sous Vide Scallops

Emotions of pure anticipation were building up while plating the sliced steak with coffee coriander rub. It was cooked sous vide style in the SKS 48″ Dual fuel Pro range with sous vide. The meat was so tender from cooking that takes place within a controlled temperature water bath. SKS is so far the only luxury kitchen brand that has sous vide integrated into their range appliances.


Signature Kitchen Suite Sous Vide

I learned from Chef Nick that all its nutrients are kept within the meat from this style of cooking (sous vide is a French word meaning “under vacuum”) The passage of good food to the table is a core value for the Signature Kitchen Suite brand #TRUETOFOOD. Besides the quality of the way the food is prepared by this appliance, Oh! the flavor that was tingling in my mouth–such happiness, so many emotions!

For many years now I have become curious about the science behind our emotions. My physicist Dad always says,” If you understand the science, you can understand the world.” Well, scientists today are writing articles that our emotions are influenced by the nerves in our gut and not only from our brains. Did you know our gut is a rainforest of bacteria that is outfitted with sensory transmitters called serotonin? You will be surprised to know that our gut has 90% serotonin neurons and only 10% is in our brain. Our gut neurons send messages to tell our bodies how to work, behave and how to feel. So the saying, ”follow your gut“ is not so farfetched.


Signature Kitchen Suite Mini Truffle baked potatoes

My steak and potato with truffle preference at the SKS Experience and Design center was decided by how my body/gut was feeling. Truth be told, my body is always telling me how I am feeling. My neck gets blotchy when I am over excited and I try to hide it with scarves! If my food fondness is decided by my elevated blood pressure or heart rate, then this is scientific evidence for designing spaces as well! When you walk into a space that smells bad or feels claustrophobic, your body does not feel good and it’s your gut telling you about your emotions. Tapping into what your body is saying drives your preferences and motivations. But what is emotionally positive for one person may not be positive for another. This is where personalization comes into play. To design for each individual, I personally interview you and pay attention to your gut feelings– applying a gut sense design approach to understand you on a deeper level.

I believe design that is biological, psychological, and synchronized with how you sense nature’s elements is design that is emotive. Design that moves us from the gut in a tactile, visual, and visceral way is POETIC MODERNISM®. These two words work together to shape poetic modern lifestyles — modern comfort with an earthy and tailored architectural expression of pattern and texture. All with the intent to impact your well-being in the spaces you live in every day! Really as you can see, poetic gut moments can apply to food, art, and anything design!

RECIPES:

If you would like to try out a sous vide recipe in your home, you will need to purchase a sous vide wand, something like this LINK or go for the gold by purchasing a brand new SKS 36″ or 48″ Dual fuel Pro range with sous vide. Check out some recipes from Signature Kitchen Suite below:

If you would like to try out a sous vide recipe in your home, you will need to purchase a sous vide wand, something like this LINK or go for the gold by purchasing a brand new SKS 36″ or 48″ Dual fuel Pro range with sous vide. Check out some recipes from Signature Kitchen Suite below: