Ok, so I'm running out of names for these posts about the plums off of our backyard tree, but I promise this recipe is worth any cheesiness of my titling.

True connoisseurs like Esther might prefer the non sweetened alcoholic plum infusions, but every other recipient of our experimental plum beverages last year preferred this plum rum by far. It barely tastes alcoholic, and you can drink a ridiculous amount of it without tipsiness; it's like a beautiful nectar.

So you start with a jar (learn from me and don't use an old pickle jar or other very smelly container!). Fill it loosely up with halved or quartered plums layered with sugar (I used a cup of sugar per half-gallon jar). Pour in enough rum to fill in all the cracks and cover the plums (a surprisingly little amount), and close the jar. Give it a good shake to mix in all the sugar, then try to remember to roll it around a bit every day for the next few weeks (or months, if you're devoted). Once you crack it open around Christmas time, it's best to refrigerate it, since it will be mostly plum juice by then. The plums themselves aren't a waste either; you can eat them right out of the rum (they taste amazing) or put them on ice cream or bake them into a pie or cook them into a sauce... yum.

The hardest part is not breaking into them before December!