Enjoy this 4th of July treat from Shea Butter Secrets!

You’ll need two 4-by-14-inch tarts to create the flag. One tart has seven rows of berries and the other has six rows, so sort the berries according to size, using the smaller ones for the seven-row tart. If you like, bake another tart shell to have on hand just for serving. We used golden raspberries for the white stripes; red raspberries would work as well.

Ingredients

Makes two 4-by-14-inch tarts

* 2 recipes Pate Sucree
* Creme Fraiche Filling
* 4 ounces semisweet chocolate
* 1/2 cup apricot jam, for glazing blueberries
* 1/2 cup raspberry jam, for glazing raspberries
* 2 tablespoons water
* 2 pints red raspberries
* Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
* 1 pint blueberries, picked over

Directions

1. On a lightly floured surface, roll out a disc of pate sucree 1/8 inch thick to fit a 3 3/4-by-13 1/4-inch fluted, rectangular tart pan with a removable bottom. Brush off excess flour with a dry pastry brush. Carefully transfer dough to tart pan, tuck dough into the edges, gently pressing along sides, and allow excess dough to overhang the edges. Trim the dough by running your rolling pin over the dough against the edges. Gently shape the edges by pressing the length of your forefinger against each flute along the sides. Prick all over the bottom with the tines of a fork. Repeat with remaining disc of dough. Transfer to the refrigerator, and chill for 1 hour.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove chilled tart shells from refrigerator, and line each with a piece of parchment paper that overhangs the edges by at least 2 inches. Fill parchment with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until just starting to color, about 20 minutes. Remove parchment and weights from tart shells, and return tart shells to oven. Continue baking until tart bottom is golden, about 20 minutes more. Transfer tart shells to a cooling rack, and allow to cool completely. Carefully remove tart shells from pan.
3. In a small bowl in the microwave or set over a pan of simmering water, heat chocolate until it is just melted, about 1 1/2 minutes; stir until smooth. Using the back of a spoon, line each tart shell with chocolate. Refrigerate to set, at least 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat apricot and raspberry jams in two separate saucepans with about 1 tablespoon water in each; strain into separate small bowls.
4. Make top tart: Remove one lined tart shell from refrigerator and spread 1/3 of the creme fraiche filling over the bottom. Arrange 3 rows of unglazed raspberries 2/3 the length of the tart, leaving space between each row and at the top and bottom edges for 4 more rows. Dust with confectioners’ sugar until raspberries are completely coated. Toss blueberries in a bowl with strained apricot jam. Fill left third of tart shell with a layer of glazed blueberries arranged snugly in rows; top with another layer of blueberries. Toss half the remaining raspberries with the strained raspberry jam, and carefully fill empty rows with some of the glazed raspberries, rinsing your hands as needed.
5. Make bottom tart: Remove remaining tart shell from refrigerator, and spread a third of the creme fraiche filling over the bottom. Arrange 3 rows of remaining unglazed raspberries, starting at the top edge and leaving space between each and at the bottom edge for 4 more rows. Dust with confectioners’ sugar until raspberries are completely coated. Fill empty rows with remaining glazed raspberries.
6. Arrange tarts on a large board or tray to resemble the flag, and serve with remaining creme fraiche filling on the side. Finished tarts will hold at room temperature for several hours.


Have a happy 4th!

Shea Butter Secrets

By Christa Titus, eHow Contributing Writer

Shea butter comes from the nuts of Karite Nut trees that grow in Africa. The nuts are crushed and boiled so the fat can be extracted. This panacea for the skin is also edible: Shea butter is also used in cooking and can be used as a substitute for cocoa butter.
Good for the Whole Body
1.    Shea butter can be used daily as an all-over body soap, lotion or facial moisturizer (see Resources below).
Anti-Aging Ingredients
2.    LifeScript.com cites shea butter as a solution for fighting wrinkles because of the high amounts of vitamins A and E it contains. The Anti-Aging Matters blog claims it also boosts collagen production (see Resources below).
Fight Scarring
3.    Care2.com suggests that using shea butter can eliminate stretch marks and scars, and also help heal burns (see Resources).
Protection From the Elements
4.    TargetWoman.com states that the fatty acids, vitamins and cinnamic acid in shea butter protects from harmful sun rays, and also relieves sunburn; Anti-Aging Matters points out it also protects from wind, heat and salt water (see Resources) .
Healing Properties
5.    LifeScript.com reports that shea butter can heal abrasions, skin allergies, eczema, dermatitis, insect bites and frostbite (see Resources) .
Beautifying the Feet
6.    SheaButter.com recommends soaking your feet in a shea butter solution once or twice per week to soften them, then applying shea butter moisturizer (see Resources).
Good for the Scalp
7.    TargetWoman.com reports that shea butter can soothe your scalp if its dry or irritated from chemical processing (see Resources).

Welcome to Shea Butter Secrets!

We hope that you will enjoy learning about healthy beauty products with us here at Shea Butter Secrets. We will be adding wonderful articles to help you care for any skin conditions that you or a family may be experiencing. Here is an article that I wrote in the Healthy Referral magazine in the December issue.