Helena needs 3.5 cups of flour per loaf of bread and 2.5 cups of flour per batch of muffins. She also needs 0.75 cup of sugar pe
r loaf of bread and 0.75 cup of sugar per batch of muffins. Helena has 17 cups of flour and 4.5 cups of sugar available for baking. Which combination of loaves of bread and batches of muffins could Helena bake?
Let x = loaves of bread y = batches of muffins You must make a system of two equations with two unknowns that describe the problem 3.5x + 2.5y = 17 --- (1) 0.75x + 0.75y = 4.5 --- (2) Resolving we have x = 6-y (from (2)) replacing in (1) 3.5 (6-y) + 2.5y = 17 21 - 3.5y + 2.5y = 17 y = 21-17 = 4 Then substituting in (2) x = 6-y = 6-4 = 2 Answer Helena could bake: 2 loaves of bread 4 batches of muffins
