In a saucepan, combine the milk and cream.

Scrape the vanilla bean into the cream and add the empty pods. Heat over low heat until just simmering.

In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until well blended.

Add about 1/2 cup of the hot cream to the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Whisk the egg yolk mixture while slowly pouring in the rest of the hot cream mixture.

Transfer the mixture back into the saucepan and cook the custard over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, 4 to 5 minutes. Do not allow the mixture to come to a boil.

Remove the saucepan from the heat. Stir in the vanilla until blended.

Pour the hot custard through a strainer into a clean bowl, gently pressing the liquid through the strainer.

Prepare an ice bath by partially filling a large bowl with ice water. Nestle the bowl with the custard in the ice bath and let cool for 30 to 45 minutes. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the custard and on top of the bowl. Refrigerate for 3 to 24 hours

Pour the custard into an at-least 1-quart capacity ice cream maker and churn until the ice cream is the consistency of soft serve. Transfer to a plastic freezer container, cover tightly and freeze until firm, at least 3 hours or up to 3 days. Makes about 1.5 quarts.