Martha looked at the birds. Their legs were thick and strong, stained slightly by the minerals in the soil. This was what she needed. The gelatinous gold hidden within those joints was the only thing that could properly body her solstice broth—a recipe handed down through four generations of women who knew that beauty was found in the parts of the animal most people threw away.
Martha paid him in cash, the bills crisp against his calloused palms. As she drove back toward the city, the parcel sat on the passenger seat like a prize. Most people saw a terrifying, clawed limb; Martha saw the foundation of health. She saw hours of simmering on a low flame, the addition of star anise and black peppercorns, and the way the liquid would eventually set into a thick, shimmering jelly in the fridge. where to buy organic chicken feet
Silas led her to the processing shed, a small, impeccably clean building tucked behind a grove of oaks. He reached into a deep cooling chest and pulled out a brown paper parcel, tied with kitchen twine. It was heavy and cold. Martha looked at the birds