Haitian Spaghetti

The History:
Bonjou! Kijan ou ye? Nathan and I have been taking Haitian Creole from Met Lamothe, our language professor for the past semester and a half. Met Lamothe has described various aspects of Haitian culture, including cooking, and we decided to invite him over for our lesson last Friday, and I hoped to recreate a favorite Haitian breakfast dish for him.
Haitian spaghetti, according to Met Lamothe, is eaten by all Haitians- the rural villagers, the elite, the residents of Cité Soleil, and everyone in between. This seemed like a good dish to start with, and sounded manageable enough.

The Process:
 Having grown up with American spaghetti, this dish required me to move beyond the habit of boiling noodles in water and then adding sauce. Haitian spaghetti is (apparently) more about the flavor of the noodle than the sauce that is coating it. It was also a relief to cook everything in one pot- after the pierogi and gnocchi, my kitchen (and the resident dishwasher, Nathan) needed a break from foods that require 17 bowls to make them in!

The Recipe:
This recipe came from Met Lamothe. He described the spaghetti several times in both Creole and English, so I had to cobble together the recipe from the two languages. I also double-checked it with a Haitian friend's mom. Despite all that, I still had no idea what I was doing. But... it was easy enough.

1 lb spaghetti (normally we use whole wheat noodles, but I used regular noodles for authenticity's sake.)
1 onion, chopped
4-5 whole cloves (Met Lamothe never specified how many, I used 12 which was over-clovey.)
2-3 cloves diced garlic
lots of oil
2 T tomato paste (Though I used a bit more. Taste as you cook the noodles and add more as needed.)
1/2 cup diced fresh parsley
sprinkling of sugar (Many Haitians make this dish with ketchup, we didn't have any, so I added a dash of sugar to sweeten things up.)
salt to taste

Saute the onion, garlic and cloves in oil in a saucepan. Then, add the tomato paste and parsley, fry together for a minute until a tantalizing smell is gushing from the pot. Add about a liter or so of hot/boiling water, then add the spaghetti (broken in half.) The goal is to cook the spaghetti in the sauce until the noodles are cooked but not overly saucy. Most of the water should get absorbed or boil away, but add water as needed until the noodles are cooked. (I kept a lid on for most of the process to aid with cooking the noodles.) When serving, warn your guests about the presence of whole cloves so they don't accidentally consume them. 

The Results:

I can tell that this dish is an acquired taste. I actually LOVED the presence of the cloves- it gave the sauce/noodles a spicy depth and I'd definitely cook with clove in savory/tomato-based dishes again. I've also never made spaghetti like this (cooked in it's own saucy water) and thought the texture was delicious. Between the clove and the flavor and texture of the noodles, I didn't think parmesan cheese was necessary- and usually I mound heaps of cheese on my noodles! I've also been discovering a passion for parsley, surprisingly, since it's usually used as a bland garnish at restaurants. I've been enjoying integrating it into dishes.
Was it authentic? I apparently overdosed on the cloves (I used about 12, Met Lamothe said perhaps 4 would be ample). I also added more tomato paste than a Haitian would, but I liked it that way. Met Lamothe had 3 servings, so I think I did alright. I think the cloves really made this dish unique.
Would I make it again? Yes- I'd use more tomato paste, and seriously loved the cloves. It was easy and savory and made for a really satisfying breakfast.