Couple starts candy business

So, are you feeling a little withdrawal since your favorite chocolate candy maker has closed? You know, the one that offered deliciously covered berries.

Well, take heart lovers of cocoa concoctions. There is a new local business ready to step up and satisfy your craving for the devilishly delightful desserts.

Chocolate lovers who don’t already know about Nanny’s Cookies and Candies soon will.

Randy and Randie Burch, who run Lake Koocanusa Marina just north of Libby have started the business, drawing upon recipes from Randie Burch’s own recipe book and those that have been handed down from her great-grandmother Dorothy, who she still affectionately refers to as Nanny.

“Most of them are old family recipes,” Randie Burch said recently from the dining area of the restaurant at the marina. “She was a great cook and dessert maker.”

To date, the Burches offer varieties of candies and cookies ranging from holiday favorites such as carrot cookies to almond bark to banana bread.

The Burches, who get assistance from marina workers and their son, Josh, have been working overtime to advance the business before the peak camping and boating season arrives.

“We originally started this business to try to keep some of our employees on during the slower times,” Randi Burch said.

One staffer who has been an integral part of the Nanny’s is Assistant Manager Dee Nelson.

“She is just terrific with any task or duty we give her,” Randy Burch said.

The current list of goodies offered by Nanny’s Cookies and Candies includes 27 items, but the Burches said that list is likely to grow.

“We’re looking to add some sugar-free items and huckleberry desserts,” Randie Burch said. “We’re still working on that, though.”

Candies, which include such things as a mixed berry bark, nut clusters, turtles and divinity, are available in six-ounce volumes. Prices range from $3.75 for the Rocky Mountain pack to $6.75 for the turtles. 

Nanny’s cookies and baked goods come in eight-ounce volumes and range from $1.50 for the large muffins to $13 for a pie that can be purchased in chocolate, pumpkin and banana flavors.

Other favorite cookies include chocolate chips and carrot cookies, which are only available during the holiday season.

Additional pies, which are only available at the marina, are available in apple, cherry, blueberry and pumpkin.

The Burches recently had their kitchen at the marina inspected and certified to produce mail-order baked goods, and they soon hope to offer sugar-free recipes as soon as they get approval from the Food and Drug Administration.

“There is an awful lot of approvals to get,” Randy Burch said. “You’d never think about all the permits and approvals necessary to send food through the mail. If we just baked our goods and didn’t mail them, we could sell them over the counter. This is much more involved.”

The Burches are not new to the baking business, as they owned a bakery in Colorado before the couple came to Lake Koocanusa.

“Randie is a pretty good cake decorator,” Randy Burch said. 

Currently, Nanny’s Cookies and Candies are available at the marina and at Rosauers and Ace Home store in Libby.

“We’ll even deliver to Libby,” Randie Burch said. “We’re still waiting for some (federal) approvals, but when that happens we have folks in Washington, Priest River (Idaho) and in Eureka who are interested in selling our goods.”

The Burches also offer special holiday gift boxes and baskets with a collection of goodies.

“We’ll do just about anything,” Randy Burch said.

To order, contact Nanny’s Cookies and Candies at 406 293-7474.