For the Stepp family of Casper, candy making is in their blood.

"I've done a lot of odd jobs like bartending and waitressing," said Erin Stepp, 24, "but I always end up coming back.

"It's the cravings, I guess!"

Erin does merchandising sales at her family's store, Donells Candies. The Casper staple has been a source of candy, chocolate and popcorn since Erin's grandparents, Don and the late Elma Stepp, opened the store with their namesake in 1956.

It's one of about 700 small candy factories left in the U.S.

Don, 81, is still a fixture at the store, making many of the candies he first adapted from "Rigby's Reliable Candy Teacher."

"I've been at it since I was 20 years old, but it wasn't what I set out to do," he said.

Don served in the U.S. Navy in the 1940s and had planned to go to college to be a gym teacher. But when he got out in 1948, he got a job at Peter's Popcorn in Greeley, Colo. He spent three years there, learning how to make candy and popcorn.

Later, he and his wife opened their first candy store in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The couple visited Elma's sister who lived in Casper and decided they liked the area. After the birth of their son, Mike, the Stepps moved their family and their store to Casper.

Since then, the store's location has changed, as has some of the candy it carries. Hard candy, popular in the 1950s, gave way to gourmet chocolates, and home-made ice cream was added to the menu a couple of years ago. Popcorn, however, remains a customer favorite.

Mike, Erin's dad, grew up in the store. With a passion for music, he too considered other avenues, but always came back to candy.

"It does get into your blood," said Mike, 54.

Now, he manages the store, among other tasks.

Mike's son, Ryan, also works in the store. He does a little bit of everything, including making candy, helping his dad with purchasing and making all the ice cream.

"I was an auto mechanic for five years, but the family business called me back," said Ryan, 30.

He enjoys the flexibility of his job, which allows him to bring his son Matthew, 2, with him to the store and take time off when needed.

Matthew will likely grow up in the store, just as his father and his father's father did.

"Compared to other kids, it's a different lifestyle," Ryan said.

Mike's two other children, Patrick and Cathy, help around the holidays, when many of the Stepps work 16-hour days making, packaging and selling chocolate candies. On most days, 50 pounds of chocolate are used in candy making, but from Thanksgiving to Christmas, they go through about 250 pounds of chocolate a day.

Working with family can be challenging, but the Stepps make the best of it.

"You have your good days and your bad days," Erin said, "but at the end of the day, you're family.

"And those who aren't, become family whether they want to or not."

Pecan Pixies (turtles)

Makes about 50 to 60 pieces

Ingredients:

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup half-and-half

3/4 cup light brown sugar

6 ounces evaporated milk

1/4 stick butter

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

6 cups raw medium or large pecan pieces

1 cup light corn syrup

nonstick cooking spray

a pinch salt

a pinch baking soda

2 pounds melted, tempered chocolate

Instructions:

1. Spray nonstick cooking spray lightly on three 8- by-13 cookie sheets. Cover each sheet completely with pecans, a half inch deep.

2. Combine sugar, corn syrup, half-and-half, butter, salt and soda in large (four or five quart) saucepan.

3. Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring it with a wooden spoon to make sure all the sugar dissolves. The batch will boil up in the sauce pan and then settle back down.

4. Use a candy thermometer to measure the temperature; cook to approximately 230 F*. Then, slowly add the evaporated milk while stirring. Avoid stopping the boil.

5. Continue to stir to avoid scorching and cook to 240 - 242 F*. Add vanilla, remove from heat and allow to cool two or three minutes.

6. Using a small wooden spoon or table spoon, carefully dip caramel and drop onto pecan covered cookie sheets. Set aside and allow to cool to room temperature.

7. Once it's cool, brush the loose nuts from the pans and place the remaining candies on cookie sheets lined with wax paper.

8. Drop the candies upside down in chocolate, remove and replace them on the cookie sheets. Be careful that they don't touch. Allow to stand in a cool place until the chocolate sets.

* Cooking temperatures are sea level, and must be adjusted for altitude: Lower the temperature 1 F for every 500 feet above sea level.

Recipe provided by Donells Candies

* Carol Seavey is editor of Live Well Wyoming. Contact her at 307-266-0544 or carol.seavey@trib.com. Read her blog at tribtown.trib.com/CarolSeavey/blog.