1. Gather your ingredients: To add rum to a fruit cake, you will need a fruit cake (homemade or store-bought), rum (of your choice), a pastry brush, and a clean dish towel or plastic wrap.

2. Choose your rum: Select a good-quality rum that complements the flavors of your fruit cake. Dark rum tends to work best, but you can also experiment with spiced or gold rum.

3. Prepare the cake: If you are making the fruit cake at home, bake it according to your favorite recipe. Once baked, remove it from the oven and let it cool completely on a wire rack.

4. Poke holes in the cake: Use a skewer or toothpick to poke small holes all over the surface of the cooled cake. These holes will help the rum soak into the cake more effectively.

5. Warm the rum: In a small saucepan, gently heat 1/4 – 1/2 cup of rum over low heat for about 3 minutes until warmed through. Do not let it boil since that would evaporate some of its alcohol content.

6. Brush on the first layer of rum: Dip the pastry brush into the warmed rum and gently brush it onto the surface of the cooled fruitcake, ensuring even coverage. The first layer should be light, as you will be adding more layers later on.

7. Let the cake rest: Cover the fruitcake with a clean dish towel or plastic wrap and set it aside for at least one hour, allowing time for the rum to soak into the cake.

8. Continue adding layers of rum: Every 1-2 days, repeat steps 5 through 7 until you have added enough layers of rum to achieve your desired flavor strength. A good rule of thumb is to add around 4-6 layers in total.

9. Wrap the cake: Once you have finished adding rum layers, tightly wrap the fruit cake in plastic wrap, ensuring that it’s completely sealed on all sides.

10. Store the cake: Transfer the wrapped fruit cake to an airtight container or a resealable plastic bag. Keep the container in a cool, dark place for at least 2-3 weeks to allow the flavors to develop and meld together.

11. Rotate regularly: Every 2-3 days, course through the storage period, rotate and flip the fruitcake within its container. This will ensure even distribution of rum flavor throughout the cake.

12. Check for readiness: After 2-3 weeks of storage, unwrap your fruitcake and taste it to determine if the rum flavor has developed to your liking. If not, you may continue to add more rum layers as desired and then re-wrap and store according to steps 9 through 11.

13. Prepare for serving: Once satisfied with your rum-infused fruitcake, unwrap it and transfer it to a serving platter or plate.

14. Enjoy your delicious rum-soaked fruit cake: Slice it carefully using a serrated knife and serve it with your favorite accompaniments like whipped cream, ice cream, or a cup of tea or coffee.

By following these simple steps, you can enjoy a wonderfully moist and flavorful rum-infused fruitcake that’s perfect for celebrations or just savoring on a cozy evening at home.