You’ve heard me say many a time that I am not a baker . . . meaning I can follow a recipe and bake cookies, cakes and pies but understanding the science of baking or understanding the math of ratios . . . well, that isn’t my forte’ . . . in fact . . .

To say that I am ‘math-impaired’ is an understatement . . . several years ago I took an Accounting 101 class and the instructor was so frustrated, he threw an eraser across the room at me . . . so let’s just say that I have a serious case of ‘math-anxiety’ . . .

Fast-forward a few more years following the eraser-tossing incident; I’ve moved to the Midwest and returned to college even though I knew math was going to be part of the curriculum. The Professor and I had met and ‘weren’t dating’ but he came over to my apartment every afternoon to help get me through Algebra . . . it wasn’t pretty . . . I swear, the man should be nominated for Sainthood because seriously? My eyes glaze over, my heart starts racing and all I hear is Greek . . . which I don’t speak.

I barely passed the class and during Spring Break, we got married; I finished out the semester but once Algebra was out of the way, I had one more math component to complete in order to graduate . . . soooooo . . . we looked at all the options: Calculus was out of the question as was Trigonometry, Algebra II, Computer Science and a multitude of other offerings. The only class that looked like a remote possibility was Finite Math and everyone who had taken it previously, said was easy; I registered and hit the bookstore to pick up the required book.

Once home, The Professor began flipping through the pages . . . back and forth, back and forth . . . moving from one chapter to the next . . . looking at the index . . . reviewing some of the test material . . . and finally . . . big sigh . . . he snapped the book shut and said, ‘You’re gonna flunk!’

And with that I burst into tears at which time he said, ‘You don’t have to go back – you can quit’ . . . and that, was the end of my college career . . . sigh . . . a real baker I will never be but it doesn’t stop me from making delicious goodies like this oh-so-light-and-creamy vanilla cheesecake . . . with a tangy sour cream topping . . . drizzled with gooey homemade caramel sauce . . . and sprinkled with glistening flakes of sea salt . . .

You’re welcome . . .

Print This!