• The day before you plan to churn the ice cream, place the bowl of your ice cream maker into the freezer.

Infuse the cream:

• Put the lilac flowers into a medium bowl and set aside.
• Pour the milk and cream into a saucepan and place over low heat. Allow to heat for a few minutes, stirring frequently, until warm (not hot).
• Pour the warm cream mixture over the lilac flowers. Cover the bowl, then place into the fridge to infuse overnight.

Make the ice cream base:

• Strain the cream mixture through a fine sieve to remove the lilac flowers, pressing down on the petals to extract as much flavour as possible. Set aside approx. 125ml of the strained mixture and pour the rest into a saucepan with half of the sugar (60g). Set over low heat and bring to just below a simmer, stirring frequently.
• While the cream mixture is heating up, prepare the eggs. Place the egg yolks and remaining 60g sugar into a heatproof bowl and beat with an electric whisk until pale and fluffy (the 'ribbon stage'). Add the reserved 125ml of infused cream and stir through to slacken the mixture.
• Once the cream/sugar mixture has come to just below a simmer, remove it from the heat and pour it into the egg mixture in a slow, steady stream, stirring all the time.
• Pass the mixture through a fine, heatproof sieve back into the saucepan (this will remove any pieces of egg and ensure the custard is smooth). Place the saucepan back over a low heat and stir frequently until the custard thickens. When it's ready, it should coat the back of a spoon— this should take about 10 minutes.
• Once the custard is thick, remove the pan from the heat and pour the custard into a heatproof jug. Cover the surface of the custard directly with clingfilm to prevent it from forming a skin. Allow the custard to cool slightly, then place it into the fridge to chill for at least 3-4 hours (preferably overnight).

Churn the ice cream base:

• Once the custard is cold, set up your ice cream maker as per your machine's instructions.
• With the machine running, pour the custard into the bowl and churn for 10-30 minutes, until thick and creamy.
• Transfer the churned ice cream to a freezer-safe container and freeze for at least 3 hours (preferably overnight) before serving. The ice cream will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.