We have 2 birthdays in the month of July in our family. We celebrated one with this, and last night I made a tomato pie I want to remember, because it might just be the summer recipe triumph.

Here’s what I used:

• a little leftover ground sausage (maybe 1/2 pound?)
• an onion, large slices
• 3 garlic cloves, finely cut
• deep dish pie crust from the freezer section (couldn’t manage making my own!)
• a little leftover cooked brown rice
• a handful of fresh spinach leaves, chopped
• 3-4 ripe tomatoes, sliced into circles
• goat cheese to taste
• fresh basil, cut into strips 

Here’s what I did:

• browned the sausage, then turned the heat down and threw in the onions followed by the garlic and let them cook a LONG time (maybe close to 30 minutes?)
• preheated oven to 400, put fork marks all over the pie crust, and baked it for about 7-10 minutes
• took pie crust out of oven, then layered brown rice on the bottom (it absorbs all the tomato liquid!), chopped spinach, and tomatoes.
• put it back in the oven for about 15 minutes.
• add goat cheese and bake until barely browned on pie crust and cheese.
• add fresh basil strips and serve

Savor every bite, because there will be no leftovers!

From Jeni Lee