Note: Unsweetened cranberry juice can generally be found at Trader Joe's as well as select health food and gourmet stores.
When my sister and I were kids about 7 and 8, we earnestly decided that the very best pie in the world would be one made with 20 ingredients.
I gotta confess: I find this sprightly, tingly mixture ever so much more interesting than cranberry goop out of the can.
Sort of a scrappy extramural stuffing, this is a warm mix of crispy, tender and chewy chunks of bread, moistened with vinaigrette and turkey drippings. It is a holiday variation on our traditional bread salad—I've substituted dried cranberries for the usual dried currants. Tasting as you make it is obligatory, and fun. I recommend you allow a little extra bread and vinaigrette the first time you make this recipe, so you can taste with impunity. For the best texture, use chewy, peasant-style bread with lots of big and little holes in the crumb. Such loaves are usually scaled at 1 or 2 pounds; plan on 1/4-pound bread per person. I don't use sourdough or levain type bread for this recipe, finding the sour flavor too strong and rich for this dish. And make sure to use day-old bread; fresh bread can make a soggy, doughy salad.
Ingredients