When I look at my cupboards in the autumn, filled with jams, chutneys and pickled beetroot I think of my paternal grandmother, for she was a great jam, chutney and pickle-maker. I also think that I am doing what women have done for generations filling my store cupboards with provisions for the winter to come. Preserving the plentiful bounty of Summer and Autumn for the hard times to come, as women have done since the beginning of time. I feel a warm glow and a connection and sisterhood with all those women back over the centuries.