Annie Lim
Annie Carmona-Lim, popularly known as Chef Annie or Chocolate Queen, is a pastry chef, entrepreneur, and television host in the Philippines.
Culinary training
Lim started commercial baking in 1977. She trained in local culinary schools and opened a homebaking business. Later, she took the Wilton Master class in Cake Decorating at the Wilton Cake Decorating School in Woodridge, Illinois, included in the course were Gumpaste and Pulled Sugar Techniques . She also attended a short course from the Culinary Institute of America in California, where she studied the making of European pastries, chocolate fundamentals and flavor dynamics. Furthermore, she witnessed Chocolate Manufacturing and other confectionery skills in Solingen, Germany.
Life mission
Lim was reported to have survived from cancer. Since then, she has made it a mission to share her culinary skills and promote entrepreneurship in her field.
Culinary school
In 1995, Lim established Castle of Baking and Confectionery Arts, a culinary school housed in a castle-like edifice in Quezon City, Philippines. She also opened Chocolate Lovers Incorporated, a retailer and wholesaler of baking and confectionery supplies.
Lim opened her first Canadian custom-cake shop, called "Chocolate Lover Cakes", in Richmond, British Columbia. The soft opening of the store was on August 8, 2009 and the official opening of the store will be September 9, 2009.
Media exposure
Lim has hosted Sweet Sense, a cooking show, and Creative Life, a magazine show focusing on cooking, gardening, and interior design. Both shows have been aired in ABC-5 Television Network.
Lim has authored cookbooks. She has also produced and appeared in home videos featuring step-by-step cooking demonstrations. She has expressed satisfaction in having extended her cooking classes to "every kitchen in every home" through her multimedia projects—cookbooks, videos, and pamphlets.
Publication
Baker's Guide for Beginners: Revised Edition. Chocolate Lover, Inc., 2002.