In a medium saucepan, combine the whole milk, granulated sugar, vanilla bean seeds, and the scraped vanilla pod.
Heat over medium heat until the mixture is steaming but not boiling.
Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks in a separate bowl until smooth.
Slowly pour about ½ cup of the hot milk into the egg yolks while whisking constantly to temper them.
Gradually whisk in the remaining hot milk.
Pour everything back into the saucepan.
Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula, until the custard thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon or reaches 170–175°F.
Remove from the heat and discard the vanilla bean pod.