Created by health conscious attorney Michelle Vallot, initially to keep her going during a long day at the office, the bars are hitting local stores this week. Great for breakfast on the run or a high octane boost when your two-step is flagging, Zydeo bars, $2, can be found at Red Lerelle's, Sandra's Health Food, F. Camalo, Precision Bikes, Cedar Grocery and the Lafayette Center for Yoga. For more info, check out the Web site at www.zydecobars.com — Mary Tutwiler

"I'd been dabbling in baking since 1994 or 1995," Vallot said. "Then I started making Italian confections. After law school I said, 'What about an energy bar?' I experimented for years, did taste tests and found out what people liked." The result is a bar that is unique in using sweet potatoes as a major ingredient, along with oats, pecans, molasses, raisins, whole wheat, egg whites, honey, cinammon, brown rice syrup, sunflower oil, plum puree and soy flour.

"I called it Zydeco, because it's our joie de vivre, it's about food how we eat and live," said Vallot who serves as a public defender when not managing her enterprise. "I was concerned with how people eat. There is too much salt in our diets, and we have an obesity problem in this country." This is something healthy and it tastes good. Kids like it adults like it.... golfers, hunters in deer stands. It has broad appeal."

"This is something I would eat. Its been fun It's been something I was able to put myself into."

The enterprise took a second gear in 2005.

"It kind of took off," Vallot said. "My theme has been to stick with it and keep working it." Vallot's plan is to get her fruit nut bar established before branching out to others. She described it as a breakfast bar that also be eaten for lunch or dinner. The wrapping features a Zydeco accordian, flanked by a phrase, "A wallop of energy packed in a bar."

Described as rich in texture, vitamins, nutrition and fiber, Zydeco bars are available locally at Rouse's in Youngsville, Albertsons, Precision bikes, Red Lerille's, UL's University Bookstore, and Drug Emporium, and has distribution in Opelousas, Houston, Chattanooga, and even New York City.

"At first," Vallot said. "I made them myself. But now I've outsourced them and have a contract with a manufacturer. Now I can focus on quality. I get on the phone. Get on a plane and it;s a done deal. I can be more creative with marketing."

Zydeco bars were created by Abbeville native Michelle vallot while she was going to law school. For more information visit www.zydecobars.com Zydeco bars are produced by Zydeco Foods LLC, Lafayette

 The Zydeco Bar provides a convenient and affordable bar which can serve as an alternative snack or breakfast food for on- the- go consumers who want to take refined sugars out of their diet and want nutrition and energy value from a great tasting food bar. Unlike many of the bars currently on the market, the Zydeco Bar taste great... with no disagreeable or artificial aftertaste. The Zydeco Bar has no preservatives, is rich in vitamins and nutrients, and has an easy to read label. Interestingly, this bar has a broad target audience as it appeals to both adults and children alike. Zydeco Bar serves the child market as a breakfast food, school snack or even an after school snack— important for sustaining energy in growing children. For the adult market, this bar is the perfect compliment to life's busy times which often demand nutrition on the run— whether for breakfast or to satisfy cravings between meals. This nutrient dense compact food product is high in anti-oxidants, high in dietary fiber and complex carbohydrates and is a good source of whole grains. It is also low in calories. The Zydeco Bar is the right choice for the health conscious consumer– anytime–anywhere.

The company is in the early stages of rolling out the Zydeco Bar, a moist, all-natural, vitamin-rich alternative to nutrition bars whose claim to fame, aside from its Louisiana flair, is its unexpected main ingredient: sweet potato. The brainchild of Lafayette attorney Michelle Vallot, who has spent a decade perfecting the recipe for her creation, Zydeco Bars made their first appearance in a few select stores about a year ago. Now they're available in the Acadiana area at numerous locations, including Albertson's, Rouse's and Drug Emporium. Vallot has contracted with a large-scale manufacturer and a national distributor to help put the bars on store shelves in Texas, Mississippi and parts of Florida, but she says the sweet potato is the key to her bar's success. "They taste great, and you can have your kids eating vegetables without even knowing it!"—Jerry Martin