Try this Kosmic Karma pizza, a Mellow Mushroom copycat topped with red sauce, sun-dried tomatoes, feta, mozzarella, fresh tomatoes, spinach and a finishing drizzle of pesto.
If you love Mellow Mushroom flavors, you might also enjoy the copycat Mellow Mushroom pretzels referenced in the original recipe notes.
This recipe was originally published on 08/17/2018.
Kosmic Karma is a wonderful combination of ingredients many of us didn’t appreciate as kids but love now: spinach, feta, sun-dried tomatoes and pesto come together on a flavorful red-sauced pizza base. It’s savory, satisfying and easily earns a spot among favorite pizza choices.
This pie pairs well with other creative pizzas like BBQ Chicken and Caesar Salad pizza — there’s something irresistible about inventive toppings on a great crust.
The version here is a faithful copycat of Mellow Mushroom’s Kosmic Karma. Using the suggested dough — which includes molasses and honey for that distinct Mellow Mushroom flavor — will get you even closer to the original. The crust is finished with garlic butter and a sprinkling of Parmesan right out of the oven for extra richness.
If you make your own dough, you can adapt a general pizza dough recipe or use the specific copycat dough referenced in the recipe notes to better mimic the restaurant’s profile.
Pizza Sauce
Homemade pizza sauce is quick and simple: stir together crushed tomatoes, olive oil, salt, minced garlic, dried oregano, dried basil and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Letting the sauce sit for a bit improves the flavor, and remember — when spreading it on the dough, less is more. Too much sauce adds excess moisture and can weigh down the crust.
Mellow Mushroom-Style Dough
For the most authentic result, use a Mellow Mushroom copycat dough that includes a touch of molasses and honey—these ingredients give the dough a distinctive aroma and flavor. If you don’t have that specific dough, a well-made homemade pizza dough or a good store-bought dough will still produce excellent results. Brush the finished crust with melted garlic butter and sprinkle with Parmesan when it comes out of the oven.
How to Assemble Kosmic Karma Pizza
Start with a thin layer of red sauce; avoid over-saucing. Add the chopped spinach and sun-dried tomatoes, then layer on the cheeses — mozzarella and crumbled feta provide a wonderful balance of melty richness and salty tang. Top with thinly sliced fresh tomatoes.
Bake the pizza until the cheese is bubbling and the crust is golden. When the pizza is hot from the oven, brush the crust with melted garlic butter and sprinkle with Parmesan. Finish by drizzling pesto over the pie; a squeeze bottle gives a neat swirl, or simply spoon it on for a rustic look.
For best results, preheat your oven as hot as it will go. If you have a baking steel or stone, that will deliver great crust texture. One method is to broil briefly for 2 minutes to get some char, then bake at 550°F until done. If your oven tops out at 500°F, that temperature still makes a great pizza.
Give this Kosmic Karma copycat a try and see if it becomes a new favorite — it’s a flavorful, well-balanced pie that celebrates classic, slightly unexpected toppings.
Kosmic Karma Pizza Mellow Mushroom Copycat
Kosmic Karma pizza is topped with spinach, feta, sun-dried tomatoes and pesto. This is a seriously tasty copycat of the Mellow Mushroom favorite.
Ingredients
- 1 dough ball of Mellow Mushroom copycat dough (see notes for recipe link)
- 3 oz fresh spinach, or ¼ cup frozen spinach (thawed and liquid squeezed out)
- 2 tbsp sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
- 1 tomato, sliced thinly
- ½ cup feta cheese
- 1½ cups mozzarella cheese, grated
- 2 oz pesto
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 tbsp butter, melted
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- Parmesan cheese, for finishing
- Optional: cornmeal or semolina if using a pizza peel
Homemade Red Pizza Sauce
- 14 oz crushed tomatoes
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp dried basil
- ⅛ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 500°F (or as high as your oven allows).
- If using the homemade sauce, stir the sauce ingredients together and let it rest while you prepare the pizza.
- Prepare your pizza dough, stretching it and leaving a slightly thicker outer crust.
- If using a pizza stone or steel, dust your peel with cornmeal or semolina.
- Spoon a light layer of pizza sauce onto the dough, keeping it away from the edges.
- Add chopped spinach, half the feta, sun-dried tomatoes, a pinch of salt and pepper, then the mozzarella. Top with the remaining feta and sliced tomatoes.
- Place the pizza in the oven. Optionally broil for 2–3 minutes at the start to create char marks, then bake at high temperature until cheese is bubbling and crust is golden, about 8–10 minutes depending on your oven.
- Combine melted butter and minced garlic. When the pizza comes out, immediately brush the crust with the garlic butter and sprinkle with Parmesan.
- Drizzle pesto over the hot pizza using a squeeze bottle or spoon.
Notes
- The referenced dough recipe is used for both the Mellow Mushroom copycat pretzels and pizza; to use it specifically for pizza, increase the water to a total of 1¼ cups.
- To replicate the charred look, broil the pizza for the first 2–3 minutes and then finish baking at high heat.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8
Serving Size: 1 slice
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 640
Total Fat: 32g
Saturated Fat: 13g
Trans Fat: 0g
Unsaturated Fat: 16g
Cholesterol: 36mg
Sodium: 1150mg
Carbohydrates: 72g
Fiber: 5g
Sugar: 4g
Protein: 17g
Nutrition figures are estimates from online calculators.
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