• Single shell pie crust
• 1 egg white
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 6 medium sweet onions
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 3 teaspoons minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
• ½ ounce Gruyère cheese
• pitted Manzanilla olives

1. Pre-bake the pie crust
2. Lightly beat egg white
3. While still warm, brush the crust with egg white
4. Peel and thinly slice onions
5. In skillet, heat the olive oil and butter over low heat
6. Add onions
7. Sprinkle onions with sugar, salt, and pepper
8. Cover and cook without stirring on lowest possible heat 45 minutes
9. Shred Gruyère cheese finely
10. Preheat oven to 400°
11. Raise heat on onions to medium
12. Stir and cook onions until all liquid has evaporated and they are golden
13. Turn heat to low
14. Add garlic and thyme
15. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes
16. Fill pie shell with onion mixture
17. Sprinkle with Gruyère cheese
18. Place olives on top
19. Bake for 20 minutes or so (until cheese is melted and top is brown)

The result was heavenly. Several folks told me it was the best of the 20 or so pies we had at the last Pie Night. It might become one of my staple pies. Easy to make and so very very tasty.

Recipe is what I made, and does not exactly match what’s in the cookbook.

• 1½ pounds bulk sweet Italian sausage
• 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
• ½ chopped sweet onion
• 6 teaspoons minced garlic from jar
• 16 ounce package hot roll mix
• 5 eggs
• 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• ½ of a 15 ounce carton ricotta cheese
• ½ of a 10 ounce package of frozen chopped spinach
• 2 4 ounce cans sliced mushrooms
• 1 more egg
• shredded Parmesan cheese

1. Thaw spinach and drain
2. Preheat oven to 350°
3. Cook sausage, pepper, onion, and garlic in large skillet over medium heat until sausage is browned
4. Prepare hot roll mix according to package directions through the kneading step (my hot roll package mix required another egg, as well as margarine)
5. In a large bowl, beat five eggs
6. Stir in 1 cup of the mozzarella
7. Stir in ricotta
8. Stir in spinach (I forgot this step, and had to sorta mix it in later)
9. Stir in sausage/pepper/onion/garlic mixture
10. Stir in drained mushrooms
11. Grease a 9 inch springform pan
12. Roll ¾ of the dough into a 15 inch circle on a heavily floured surface
13. Lay it into the springform pan, pressing the dough into the sides
14. Sprinkle bottom of pie with ½ cup of the mozzarella
15. Add sausage/cheese/egg/etc. mixture into pie
16. Add remaining mozzarella to the top of the pie
17. Roll the rest of the dough into a top pie crust
18. Place top crust on top, then fold edges over and pinch to seal
19. Beat last egg slightly
20. Combine 1 tablespoon of water with egg
21. Brush egg on top of pie and let dry for 5+ minutes
22. Score the top of the pie in a diamond shape, but don’t cut all the way through the crust
23. Sprinkle with Parmesan
24. Bake uncovered for 40 to 45 minutes, remembering first to take your oven off pre-heat
25. Cool on a wire rack for 20+ minutes
26. Remove springform pan side, cut into wedges, and eat

Overall the pie worked out pretty good, though it was a bit soupier than I expected. I forgot to take the oven off pre-heat status (I have an older range), so that may have affected this. It probably could have used a spice or two added, though I’m not really sure what spices go well with sausage.