Ginger Sauce for One Serving

Trader Joe's used to sell a pre-made carrot-ginger stir fry mix, and craving that I decided to make a similar sauce. I put it with carrots and swede* but I suspect it would be nice on lots of things where a sweet-tasting sauce can be used. 

*Swede is a kind of turnip, as I understand; not much used in the US but popular in the UK. 

The way that I made the sauce, I basically boiled the vegetables in it and allowed it to thicken by reduction that way. If I were going to pour it over something or cook it with something that finishes more quickly than root vegetables, I would probably pre-reduce the sauce. 

2 1/2 tbs butter

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp ginger powder

bay leaf

1 tbs white sugar*

2 tbs brown sugar

1/2 cup apple juice*

1/2 cup water

*I used a no-sugar-added juice. If you are using sweetened apple juice you may need to reduce or omit this extra sugar.

Combine all ingredients in a pan over heat and allow to reduce to 1/2 cup of sauce while stirring regularly. Discard bay leaf before serving.