To prepare the crust:

1. Whiz the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor to combine (Note: you can also do this by hand with a pastry cutter!) Pulse in the shortening and butter, just until evenly dispersed in pea-sized clumps. Begin adding ice water 2 tablespoons at a time until moist clumps begin to form. Remove dough from food processor, form it into a flat round disk, and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill in the fridge for at least an hour prior to use.
2. When you’re ready to bake the pie, roll the dough out on a well-floured surface into a 1/8-1/4” circle about an inch larger than your pie plate on all sides. Roll the dough loosely back onto the rolling pin and lift it into the pie dish. Gently fit the dough into the pie plate and trim off any excess dough leaving a 1” border around the edge of the dish. Fold the lip of the dough under so that it extends just over the edge of the pie plate and crimp the edges as you prefer. Prick a few holes in the bottom of the dough with a fork and place the whole pan into the freezer to chill briefly, about 15 minutes, or longer if your dough has gotten soft. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
3. When the oven is preheated, remove the pie plate from the freezer and line the insides of it with a piece of parchment paper. Use either pie weights or dry beans/rice to weigh down the dough and bake for about 15 minutes. After this initial bake, remove the pie weights, brush the entire crust with a thin layer of egg wash (the egg whisked with water), and bake for an additional 5 minutes or until set. In the meantime, prepare your filling.
   

   To prepare the filling:

4. First, prepare the tomatoes. To remove excess liquid, sprinkle the sliced tomatoes with 1-1/2 teaspoons salt and layer them in a colander with sheets of paper towel. You can gently press down on the towels every so often to squeeze out excess juices. Do this for about 10 minutes.
5. In a separate bowl, combine the cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, and hot sauce. Stir and set aside.
6. Once your pie crust is par-baked, sprinkle the onions on the bottom of the crust, and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle on a bit of salt and pepper. Begin to add the drained tomatoes in layers covering the bottom of the crust, sprinkling in salt, pepper, and the Italian seasoning as you go. I used about 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon pepper total. Your tomatoes should fill up to about 1” below the lip of the pie crust. Spread the cheese mixture on top and place in the preheated oven to continue baking until the crust is golden and the insides are bubbling throughout about 30 minutes. Remove the pan and allow it to cool completely prior to cutting and serving warmed.