German Potato Pancakes ('Reibekuchen')

Prepare the apple sauce:

Melt the butter and honey in a medium-sized pot over medium heat and keep stirring constantly. Once hot, add the cinnamon stick and keep stirring the mixture until the honey caramelizes turning into golden brown caramel color, about 2-3 minutes.

Immediately take the pot off the heat and stir in your apples. Return to the stove and set the heat to medium-low. Sweat the apples for 3-4 minutes. Then add in the water and bring it to a light simmer. Cover the pot with a lid and let the apples cook until they can easily be mashed with a fork, about 20 minutes.

Once the apples are tender, season them with lime juice and a pinch of salt to taste. Discard the cinnamon stick. Mash the apples by hand or transfer the apples and cooking liquid to a blender and blend until smooth. Adjust the consistency to your liking by adding in more water to thin the sauce or by discarding some of the cooking liquid for a thicker sauce. Optionally pass the blended apple sauce through a fine-mesh sieve for a super smooth texture.

Set the apple sauce aside to cool.

Prepare the potato pancakes:

Wrap your grated potatoes and onions inside a kitchen towel and squeeze out any excess moisture. Reserve the liquid in a large mixing bowl. Wait for the potato starch to set at the bottom of the mixing bowl. Then carefully drain the liquid leaving behind the potato starch. Add the potato and onion shreds into the mixing bowl and add the eggs and flour. Mix briefly and season to taste with nutmeg and salt.

Heat a large amount of clarified butter over medium heat inside a large nonstick saute pan. The bottom of the pan should be covered by at least 1/8 inch of clarified butter.

Form individual pancake patties using your hands and, working in batches, place them inside your saute pan. Lightly flatten them out using a spoon or fish slice. Fry on the first side until the bottom is golden brown and crispy, about 3-4 minutes. Then turn them over and fry on the other side until they are golden brown and crispy on both sides, about 3-4 minutes. Drain the fried pancakes on a paper towel and continue frying pancakes until all the pancake mixture is used up. The fried pancakes can be kept warm in the oven. It's best to serve them immediately after frying.