What’s groundwater?

All of our water comes from two channels:

 
Ninety-nine percent of all available freshwater in the world is groundwater, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. That means all the world’s rivers, lakes, streams and reservoirs make up only one percent.
 
ALMOST EVERYONE NEEDS GROUNDWATER

We couldn’t exist without groundwater. Along with oxygen, it is arguably the most important natural resource for human life, according to the National Groundwater Awareness Association (NGWA).

“Life as we know it would quite simply not be possible without groundwater. It provides drinking water to about 132 million Americans (44.5 million through water wells), supplies surface freshwater bodies, waters crops, and supports ecosystems,” said NGWA Public Awareness Director Cliff Treyens.

 
Irrigation uses an estimated 53.5 billion gallons of groundwater a day, supplying water to some of the most productive agricultural lands in the world.

Livestock and aquaculture use an additional 3.5 billion gallons of groundwater a day.
 
If you see any abuse of groundwater—uncapped wells, pollution seeping into the ground—report it to your local authorities.

[1] An underground lake (image courtesy iStock).

[2] An illustration of an underground aquifer feeding an above-ground stream (image courtesy Groundwater Directory | New Zealand).

[3] This image shows an above-ground well tapping into the layer of groundwater beneath the surface (image courtesy SCM Waterproof Porous | Blogspot).

For more about groundwater, visit the National Groundwater Association. Their goal is to protect the quality of groundwater via responsible development, management and use of water.

Check out the different types of water in our Water Glossary.

[2] You can bake it in a loaf pan or a conventional round layer (photo courtesy King Arthur Flour).

[3] Buckeye candy: chocolate and peanut butter, shown here on a stick. It’s equally delicious without the stick (photo courtesy Wikipedia).

A nut from the buckeye tree (photo © Ohio-Nature.com).

So in addition to a supply of Justin’s peanut butter cups, we baked her this cake.

This recipe was sent to us by King Arthur Flour, with the title Peanut Butter Fudge Buckeye Cake. Since not everyone knows what a buckeye is:

The Buckeye is the state tree of Ohio is the buckeye, and the state’s nickname is the Buckeye State.

The name “buckeye” stems from Native Americans, who called the nut from the tree “hetuck,” which means buck eye, because the markings on the nut resemble the eye of a deer.

The name took hold during William Henry Harrison’s 1840 presidential campaign, and local confectioners soon were making balls of peanut butter fudge mostly enrobed in chocolate (photo #2). The open top of peanut butter makes the candy look like the buckeye nuts, the nuts; and the confections themselves are called buckeyes.

Hence the cake. Says King Arthur Flour: “We replicate the flavors of the classic buckeye candy in this towering four-layer cake, highly recommended for your next birthday party.”

Hence the cake.

Prep time is 20 to 25 minutes, bake time is 35 to 38 minutes.
 
 
RECIPE: CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER BUCKEYE CAKE

Ingredients For The Cake

 
For The Filling

 
For The Icing

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease and flour (or grease, then line with parchment, then grease again) two 8″ x 2″ round cake pans. Note: These pans need to be at least 2″ tall. If you have non-standard, shorter 8″ pans, substitute 9″ round pans.

2. MAKE the cake: Whisk together the dry ingredients. Add the eggs, oil, and vanilla, beating until smooth. Gradually add the water, beating until smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared pans.

4. MAKE the filling: Mix the sugar, peanut butter, and vanilla until crumbly. Add the milk and mix until smooth, adding more milk if necessary to make a spreadable filling. When ready to serve the cake…

5. DIVIDE the cooled layers in half horizontally, to make four layers. Place one layer on a serving plate and spread with filling. Repeat with the next two layers. Top with the final cake layer.

6. MAKE the icing: Combine the chocolate chips, cream, and corn syrup in a microwave-safe measuring cup. Microwave until the cream is very hot, and the chips are soft. Stir until the chips melt, and the mixture is smooth. Spread the icing atop the cake, letting it drizzle down the sides.

7. SERVE in thin slices; the cake is very rich. Refrigerate any leftovers for several days or freeze for longer storage.

 
TIPS

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National Ranch Dressing Day is March 10th.

In the category of bottled dressing, Ranch surpassed the previous favorite, Italian dressing, as America’s favorite—way back in 1992.

Here’s something most people don’t know: Ranch is buttermilk dressing with some sour cream added. Buttermilk dressing, supplanted by ranch, was a popular dressing that originated in the southern U.S. in the 1800s or earlier.

By the 1980s, buttermilk had long fallen out of fashion. How did it evolve into ranch?

At Hidden Valley Ranch, a dude ranch in the Santa Ynez mountains, near Santa Barbara, California (now closed), sour cream was added to provide tang to buttermilk dressing.

It was so popular that guests asked to buy it; and sales slowly expanded until the dressing caught the attention of big-company executives and was purchased by The Clorox Company.

Ranch dressing is made from buttermilk, mayonnaise, seasonings (black pepper, garlic, ground mustard seed, lemon juice, paprika) and herbs (chives, parsley, and dill). Sour cream or yogurt can be substituted for all or part of the buttermilk or mayonnaise.

Below:

> Ranch dressing variations.

> Beyond salad dressing: more uses for ranch.

Elsewhere on The Nibble:

> Homemade ranch dressing recipe.

> Is buttermilk dressing the same as ranch?

> The history of ranch dressing.

> More ways to use ranch dressing.

> The year’s 18 dip, dressing, and sauce holidays.
 
 
RANCH DRESSING VARIATIONS: A CULINARY CANVAS

“People are passionate about ‘their’ ranch [dressing],” says Andrew Hunter in Flavor And The Menu, a magazine for chefs.

But even favorites can stand sprucing up. Where would we be if pizza had never gone beyond a fresh basil topping?

Hunter offers ways to make ranch dressing “fresh and unique, while staying true to its populist form.”

1. Stir in other ingredients. Superiority Burger in New York, a vegetarian restaurants, serves tahini-laced ranch dressing. Nosh & Grog in Medfield, Massachusetts, seasons its shoestring fries with Spanish piment d’Espelette and ranch dressing powder.

But there’s so much more you can do with it. Start with these ideas:

[1] Cracked pepper is one of numerous seasonings you can use to spice up ranch (photo © Good Eggs).

[2] Add fresh herbs. Here, it’s cilantro, jalapeño, and ginger; but dill, parsley, or any of your favorites will work. Here’s the recipe (photo © The Cafe Sucre Farine).

[3] Avocado ranch dressing. Here’s the recipe (photo Eat Yourself Skinny).

3. Add fresh herbs. The herbs already in ranch dressing are dried parsley, chives and dill. Supplement those with chopped fresh versions of the same herbs. Or, augment the standard herbs with incremental fresh herbs such as basil and tarragon.

4. Make it frothy. For dipping, or over fresh greens for dressing, store a pan of ranch dressing in an ice bath and pulse it with an immersion blender before ladling it into a cup or bowl.
 

[4] Add texture and more flavor to basic ranch (Freepik photo).
 
 
BEYOND SALAD DRESSING

Use ranch dressing:

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