Some people open restaurants after culinary school. Sabrina Rudin opened one because she was starving after a long day of teaching snowboarding and couldn’t find the kind of nourishing, plant based meal she actually wanted. So she went home, made it herself, and realized Aspen needed an organic vegetarian café. That moment became Spring Café, now with locations in Aspen and New York City.
Raised on the belief that food is medicine long before it was trendy, Sabrina has built her life around making healthy eating feel generous, satisfying, and real. Her debut cookbook, Healthy with a Side of Happy, brings that philosophy into the home with more than 100 plant based recipes, thoughtful pantry guidance, and the kind of practical tips that make nourishing your family feel joyful, not overwhelming.
We caught up with Sabrina to talk about the recipe that means the most to her, the kitchen tools she swears by, and how she’s stayed true to her values every step of the way.
In the Kitchen With Sabrina Rudin
You were a snowboard instructor before you were a restaurateur. Take us back to that moment in Aspen when you realized, “I need to open this café.” What did you feel was missing? I remember the exact moment, I was riding down the mountain after a full day of a packed group lesson, and I was so hungry. I wanted a big bowl of rice and beans and veggies and tofu, with a healthy dressing, and I knew there was nowhere to order it from. I was tired but I went home and made a big stir fry and it was so satisfying, my neighbor and friend Ali who was also teaching snowboarding came over and had some too and loved it, and that’s when I realized Aspen needed an organic and vegetarian cafe and juice bar.
Spring Café was inspired by the vegetarian restaurants of your childhood like Angelica Kitchen and Souen. What did those spaces give you that you wanted to recreate in your own way? They gave me a sense of belonging, which is the beautiful thing about food. I knew that I could walk into Angelica’s any time of day and sit down to a meal that was nourishing, healthy, satisfying, and made with love and kindness. I still think of Angelica’s cornbread and dragon bowls almost daily, and I was so grateful to have that space while I was a college student at NYU, it just felt like home. That’s what I hope we achieve with Spring, a place where anyone can walk in, whether it be a student, a young young, a single person or a couple or group of friends, and just get a healthy, nourishing, beautiful meal that is made with their health and well-being in mind.
When you think about your cooking style today, what’s a throughline from your childhood that still shows up on your menu? Improvisation, my mom never followed a recipe, she just looked at whole ingredients and listened to what she was craving and made something delicious, and a lot of tofu and stewed beans, two superfoods I can’t live without.
What’s one misconception you think people still have about vegetarian or plant based food? That you can’t get adequate protein, can’t feel full and can’t be nourished. The base of your plate should be vegetarian with a little animal protein on the side if you need it. Beans, grains, prepared properly for optimal digestion and nutrient absorption, and tons of veggies are the healthiest way to eat.
You share recipes, motherhood, and wellness online. What do you enjoy most about connecting with your audience? Knowing that I get to impact people’s lives in a way that means the most to me, which is through healthy food. Seeing my audience create my recipes and then enjoy them with their families is a feeling I can’t describe.
If a family wants to make their kitchen “cleaner” but feels overwhelmed, what are three small swaps you always recommend starting with?
+ Go organic wherever you can. Organic isn’t perfect but it means no glyphosate, and other major industrial agricultural chemicals. If you can shop your local farmer’s market even better!
+ Replace your teflon or non-stick pans with non toxic, non-stick, like Caraway and Greenpan, removing microplastics and PFOAs goes a long way towards whole-body health.
+ Filter your tap water, tap water is filled with industrial byproducts, fluoride, microplastics and parasites, an under the counter filter removes these toxins, and then you can forgo plastic bottles and fill up reusable water bottles throughout the day, a big win for you and for the environment.
What’s the one kitchen tool you think is truly worth investing in? A great blender like the stainless steel Vitamix.
Your debut cookbook, Healthy with a Side of Happy, is coming out this spring. What inspired you to finally put these recipes into a book? I have always wanted to write a book and I knew I would one day. It was a beautiful surprise that my first book was a cookbook, but I poured so much of myself into this book that it also feels like a memoir and a treasure trove of tips and knowledge. I wrote all the headnotes as personal anecdotes and stories, it was a three year process from signing with my wonderful agent to pub day, and the most incredible journey.
Which recipe in the book is your favorite comfort food, and which one is your favorite crowd pleaser? Comfort food is easily my mom’s vegetarian lasagne, crowd pleaser is the feel good nachos!
What’s a small kitchen tip that makes a big difference? Wash and prep your produce at the beginning of the week, dry thoroughly and store in re-usable produce bags, I have a whole how-to in my book! This will ensure you eat enough vegetables during the week, make meal time easier and help you fuel up on fiber!!!
Are there three pantry staples you always keep stocked no matter what? Tamari and Coconut milk.
What are you most proud of when you look at your journey so far? I’m most proud that no matter how many times I heard the word “no” or “that’s a terrible idea” or “get a real job” I kept going. My path has been unconventional for sure, but it has also led me to a life I feel deeply grateful to lead each day, a family I love and treasure and a career that while challenging and intense, fills me with a sense of purpose and feels more like a JOY than a JOB. And I’m proud that through it all I’ve stayed true to myself, my mission and my values, that doesn’t always mean the quickest and fastest growth, but it does mean that the wins feel even sweeter and more meaningful because I didn’t sacrifice my principles to get there.
