Recipe: Holiday Cheese Truffles



Here’s a great appetizer to try for your upcoming holiday gatherings. They are easy to make and festive.

Holiday Cheese Truffles

2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1 pkg.  (8 oz.) KRAFT Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
1 tsp. garlic powder
Dash ground red pepper (cayenne)
1/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers
1/4 cup  chopped green onions
1-2/3 cups PLANTERS Chopped Pecans
Crackers

BEAT cream cheese, shredded cheese, garlic powder and ground red pepper until well blended. Divide in half. Add roasted red peppers to one half and green onions to the other half; mix each half until well blended. Cover.

REFRIGERATE several hours or until chilled.

SHAPE each cheese mixture into 24 balls, each about 1 inch in diameter. Roll in pecans. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve with crackers, bread, etc.

Enjoy and Happy Holidays to all!

Barb

Posted in Cooking in your kitchen on December 21st, 2007 by Barb | | 0 Comments



Visualize your New Kitchen…



A friend of mine always has to “visualize” things before actually doing something. With that said, imagine, new granite countertops, new appliances, new floors, and new lighting. 

During the holiday season the kitchen is usually the most highly trafficked area in the house. Wouldn’t it be fun to have an updated, functional kitchen that reflects your personality and needs? We have all heard about the decline in new home construction, why not remodel your existing home to accommodate your lifestyle? At the same time, you will be adding value to your home and making your living area more enjoyable.

Paramount Granite Company would be happy to provide you with an estimate on granite countertops to get the process started. Either fax, or email us your drawings and we will send you a bid within 24 hours! If you have qustions feel free to contact us.

Feel free to share…

Angie

Posted in Granite, Company, Business on December 19th, 2007 by Angie | | 0 Comments



It’s Here!



Some of you may remember a previous blog I wrote, mentioning that we’ve been playing a little musical chairs with our equipment. Well…I’m glad we prepared ahead of time, because it made today’s CNC mill installation go smoothly. The guys are used to unloading 900 lb. slabs, but it’s not every day that they get to unload a 13,000 lb. machine. The new mill will be used in conjunction with our other mill, bridge saws, edge polishing machine, etc. and will allow us to operate more efficiently. We are looking forward to the new year and producing some beautiful granite countertops just for you!

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Following are some photos:

Posted in Granite, Company, Industry News on December 18th, 2007 by Barb | | 0 Comments



Recipe: Jalepeno Baked Brie



Here’s a good recipe to try for one of those holiday get togethers. It is easy to make and a works great for an appetizer.

Jalepeno Baked Brie

2 (4 oz) packages crescent rolls
1 (8 oz) wheel of Brie cheese
2 Tbsp. Tabasco green pepper sauce
1 egg beaten

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Work crescent roll dough into thin circle large enouhg to completely wrap the Brie. Place Brie in center of dough circle. With fork, poke top of the cheese several times. Slowly pour 1 tbsp. Tabasco green pepper sauce over top of cheese, allowing it to sink in.

Add the rest of the Tabasco green pepper sauce, poking a few more times with a fork (some green pepper sauce will run over side of the cheese). Fold the dough over the top of the cheese, working it together. Bruch edges with beaten egg to help seal.

Bake approximately 10 minutes, following directions on crescent roll package. Do not overbake, or cheese will run. Serve immediately with crackers. Makes 8-10 servings.

Enjoy!

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Posted in Cooking in your kitchen on December 14th, 2007 by Barb | | 0 Comments



Recognizing A Job Well Done



I don’t know about you, but it always brings a smile to my face when I open the mail and come across a thank you card amongst the usual bills. It is funny, but most people these days don’t take the time to send a hand written thank you note, so when we receive one it always special. We often hear verbal comments such as “our granite countertops turned out beautiful,” or “your intstallers did a great job,”  but a hand-written note, or e-mail is always meaningful. At PGC, we always make sure that these notes get passed around to the entire team, so everyone can feel positive about their work and a job well done.

To see what our customers are saying about us, please make sure to visit our testimonial page.

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Posted in Granite, Company on December 13th, 2007 by Barb | | 0 Comments



Learning Links 12/11/07



“A man is but the product of his thoughts what he thinks, he becomes.”
–Mahatma Gandhi

I don’t know about you, but I am tired of hearing all of the negative hype in regards to the building and remodeling industry. Yes-it is true that things have slowed down, but what do you expect after more than a decade of record growth. Just because the market is in a transition phase, doesn’t mean people don’t want to build, or remodel, although the media would have you believe this. What is wrong with talking about the positive trends and outlook instead of just doom and gloom? The problem is that good news and a positive outlook doesn’t sell newspapers. To help you get your thoughts back on track, I’ve included several links below that contain positive information.

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Posted in Industry News, Learning Links on December 11th, 2007 by Barb | | 0 Comments



Taking Multi-tasking To A New Level!



We’ve all seen it and may be guilty of it ourselves on occassion. Afterall, cell phone’s are everywhere these days, and you are bound to see them used in some strange places such as; at the gym, (person talking while on the treadmill), at a restaurant, (person eating and talking at the same time), at a grocery store, (person checking out and talking at the same time), on a bike, (person biking and talking at the same time), etc. That’s the thing with technology, it is always progressing and sometimes allows us to do things that well… maybe we shouldn’t be doing. I don’t know if there’s a cell phone etiquette book out there, but maybe there should be.

Last Friday evening, Chris and I decided to take in some bowling for something a little different to do. We both bowled a few spares, a few strikes, had a few drinks, and had a good time. The best part of the evening however, was witnessing a 20 some year old bowling with a bowling ball in one hand and cell phone in the other. I couldn’t believe it and couldn’t stop laughing. Talk about a balancing act!

After I finally stopped laughing, I thought to myself, this probably wasn’t really that big of a deal for  Generation Y kid. Afterall they can text message at the speed of light, instant message while doing homework and listening to music, juggle e-mail on their BlackBerrys while talking on their cell phones, etc. They are definitely a generation of multitaskers. It is no wonder this kid even managed to get most of the pins down. He obviously had performed this feat before.

I don’t know about you, but I won’t be guilty of trying this one out.

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Posted in Uncategorized on December 10th, 2007 by Barb | | 0 Comments



New Season…New Hours!



FlakeWell, winter has officially knocked on our front door!  Don’t let that stop you from installing new granite countertops, bar tops, vanities, and fireplace surrounds. We have a cozy, warm showroom with hundreds of granite samples on display.

Our new showroom hours are:

  • Monday - Wednesday 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
  • Thursday 8:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.
  • Friday 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

We started our extended showroom hours a few weeks ago, in an effort to accomodate our customer’s busy schedules. Please feel free to just stop in. If you’re looking for a specific color, please call our customer service representatives ahead of time and we will get it staged for you. Feel free to share…

Angie

Posted in Granite, Company on December 6th, 2007 by Angie | | 0 Comments



Selling a Hesitant Buyer



There’s not a sales person out there that hasn’t delt with a hesitant buyer. Even when you’ve felt that you’ve done everything right in your sales presentation; given the information about your product, answered the customers questions, have gotten positive feedback (head nods in agreement with you), etc., you end up with no sale and leave wondering what the problem is. This is a common scenario for many sales people, but you might wonder what can be done to change the situation.

“If a prospect or customer is hesitatant to commit, then either the salesperson hasn’t offered enough value or there is a hidden objection that needs to be uncovered,” according to a quote by Andris Zoltners, professor of marketing at the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University found in the article, “An Uncertain Situation,” published in the November/December 2007 issue of Selling Power magazine. The sales person needs to be persistant and ask more questions that are open ended to discover the real objection and over come it.

Maybe the sales person didn’t provide enough information, or create a sense of urgency to the buyer. According to Sales Consultant, Myers Barnes, “One way to create a sense of urgency is “to use reverse engineering, which means starting with the commitment and building backwards. (e.g.  If a customer wants a certain delivery date, start with what needs to take place in order for that to happen and get the customer to sign to commit to the process.)” He also believes there are four things customers need to have answered before they will make a commitment, which are listed below:

Four things customers need to have answered before they will make a commitment:

  1. Why should I buy this from you?
  2. Why should I buy from your company?
  3. Why should I buy your products?
  4. Why should I buy today?

Are your sales people asking these questions to make the sale?

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Posted in Marketing on December 5th, 2007 by Barb | | 0 Comments



Brown Toned Granites Add Warmth!



While there are many granite colors to choose from these days, brown toned granites have been popular throughout the years. The color brown is a warm, neutral color and has an appealing earthiness about it, which may be why consumers are drawn to it.  According to a color selection article on About.com, the color brown can actually stimulate the appetite, which may be why it is popular for kitchen countertops. If you are interested in a brown toned granite for your kitchen countertops, you may want to look at some of the selections from the list below. 

Popular brown toned granites:

  • Tropic Brown
  • Sante Fe Brown
  • Autumn Brown
  • Baltic Brown
  • Chestnut/Tan Brown
  • India Mahogany
  • Mahogany Blue/Sapphire Blue/Brown
  • Royal Auburn
  • Cocoa Cohiba
  • Copper Brown
  • Copper Canyon/Persian Brown
  • Labrador Antique
  • Many others

Thanks for reading!

Barb

Posted in Granite on December 4th, 2007 by Barb | | 0 Comments



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Paramount Granite Company - The Natural Choice

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Paramount Granite Company specializes in the fabrication and installation of natural stone countertops, islands, bathrooms, bar tops, fireplaces, furniture, tub surrounds, tile, and more.

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