BLESS THIS MESS
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line two muffin tins with 24 cupcake liners.
Drain the marachino cherries and reserve the juice. Chop the cherries with a sharp knife.
In a large bowl beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the egg whites one at a time, beating well after each one. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and stir to combine.
In a medium bowl add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk together. In a small bowl combine the buttermilk and 2 tablespoons of the reserved maraschino cherry juice.
Add ⅓ of the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and stir to combine. Add ½ of the buttermilk mixture to the sugar mixture and stir to combine.
Repeat with another ⅓ of the flour mixture, and then the rest of the buttermilk mixture, and finish with the last ⅓ of the flour misture, mixing after each addition. Stir in the chopped cherries.
Put ⅓ of a cup of the batter into the each of the prepared muffin cups. Bake for 12-15 minutes until the cake is done.
Remove from oven and let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then remove them from the pan onto a wire rack and let them cool completely before frosting.