Sour cherry:

Cherries are small, round, juicy tree fruits related to the plum. Dark or light in color and sweet or sour in flavor, they are sold fresh or dried, whole or pitted. Sweet cherry varieties are best eaten out of hand. Most tart varieties are used for pie fillings. Store fresh cherries in a covered container in the refrigerator up to 4 days.

Cheery Cherry Cheesecake Bars Recipe:

From Gooseberry Patch Holidays at Home
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup all-purpose flour
Filling
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries

1 hour 2 minutes 30 mins prep
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In a mixing bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar, and flour together; mix well.
Reserve 1/2 cup crumb mixture; press remaining mixture into an 8 inch square baking pan.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes; cool.
In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, egg, and lemon juice until fluffy (1-2 minutes).
Stir in cherries.
Spread filling over cooled crust.
Sprinkle reserved crumb mixture over top.
Bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes or until the filling is set and top is lightly browned.
Cool and store in the refrigerator.

Cherry Almond Muffins Recipe:

I recently purchased a muffin and bread book at a used bookstore. Came upon this recipe and recalled the jar of maraschino cherries leftover from Easter and thought it was a tasty way of using up what I otherwise use strictly as garnish. It initially stuck me as odd to use maraschino cherries in an otherwise healthy recipe, but the results are so tender and tasty I think of this is redemption for the poor dyed and preserved fruit. What is presented here includes my changes to the original.

2 cups whole-wheat flour
1/4 cup Splenda sugar substitute or sugar
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
3 large egg whites
1 cup plain nonfat yogurt
2 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
1 cup maraschino cherries, drained and halved
1/3 cup sliced almonds, unblanched or blanched
cooking spray 12 servings Change size or US/metric

28 minutes 10 mins prep
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Lightly spray muffin tins with cooking spray. (You can also use liners but the direct contact with the pan gives the exterior a crisper exterior.)
In a large bowl combine the flour, Splenda, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda.
In a medium bowl, beat egg whites until they are well-frothed but not stiff. If you have mereugue, you’ve gone to far. Add the yogurt and almond extract and beat a few more seconds.
Add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients, mix until just combined. Over mixing will result in some tough puck-like muffins. Gently fold in the cherries and almonds.
Fill muffin cups two-thirds full and bake for 18-20 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin should come out clean.
Serve warm. I like mine with Brummel and Brown spread. Enjoy!