Alligator pie, alligator pie,
    If I don't get some I think I'm gonna die.
    Give away the green grass, give away the sky,
    But don't give away my alligator pie.

    Alligator stew, alligator stew,
    If I don't get some I don't know what I'll do.
    Give away my furry hat, give away my shoe,
    But don't give away my alligator stew.

    Alligator soup, alligator soup,
    If I don't get some I think I'm gonna droop.
    Give away my hockey stick, give away my hoop,
    But don't give away my alligator soup.

Though he'd previously been a "serious", "adult" poet with works such as Civil Elegies, after the birth of his children (this volume is so dedicated, for Kevin and Hilary) Canadian poet Dennis Lee began composing silly and nonsense verse to entertain them. The poem Alligator Pie is merely one poem in the same-named 1974 collection, illustrated lavishly by Frank Newfeld and winning the Book of the Year for Children award from the Association of Children's Librarians. Ken Setterington (Children and Youth Advocate for Library Services, Toronto Public Library - a more distinguished commentator I cannot conceive of) claims that Alligator Pie was the work that "got Canadians interested in Canadian children's books," clearing the path for such successes as Mordecai Richler's Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang and Robert Munsch's The Paper Bag Princess, among others.

This essential (and très Canadian) volume of goofy verse includes the following poems:

...

"Alligator Pie" is apparently also the name of a shooter submitted to some drinks database by a big nobody by the name of Eileen Kennelly, inspired no doubt by the various and sundry reptilian concoctions in the poem:

Alligator Pie

1/4 oz. Bailey's Irish Cream
1/4 oz. Melon Liqueur
1/4 oz. Banana Liqueur
Whipped Cream

Shake over ice and strain into a shot glass.

Back to the Everything Bartender

...

Alligator Pie seems also to be the name of an obscure new Canadian quasi-swing band (see the lingering effects of children's literature on popular culture!) which recently released an album entitled Swing Hard, Speak Easy. Nothing more on them is known.

When I was in kindergarten (or maybe it was preschool) my teacher Mrs. Sakemoto read us Alligator Pie. I think, if I can remember correctly, they even had a tape they played and we all had to sing along. Well, anyway, after she read the poem, we were treated with a tasty surprise. Instead of the usual graham crackers and some fruit for a daily snack, we had little pieces of alligator pie! Everyone loved it so much, the teacher made us copies of the recipe for our parents.

This is my absolute favorite pie in the whole wide world and it has always been ever since we had those surprise snacks. I lost the original copy of the recipe in Jr. High, but I had managed to write down the recipe (and even doodle the cute image from the original).

Alligator Pie

Ingredients:
1 small can of Frozen Limeade
1 small container of Non-Dairy Whipped Topping
1 can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
A few drops of green food coloring

Combine all of the above and pour into a graham cracker crust pie shell. Refrigerate one hour. (I prefer to freeze it.)

(This is the crust Mrs. Sakemoto used for the little snacks.) Make individual "pies" by crushing two butter cookies and putting them into a cupcake liner. Spoon some of the filling on top and shake on a few green sprinkles.

Enjoy!

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