Bring the 1 l of milk to a simmer in a large pot and then lower the temperature to a low. In the meantime beat the egg whites with cream of tartar on low speed for a few seconds, then increase the speed to medium-high. When the egg whites start to froth start adding the sugar, spoon by spoon mixing well in-between. Mix for 6-7 minutes or until you get glossy stiff peaks. Mix in the vanilla.

Scoop spoonfuls of the meringue and poach them in the barely simmering milk, 30-50 seconds on each side, turning them after they puff up. Make sure they are not too crowded in the milk and that while poaching, the milk isn't boiling or the meringues will puff up, collapse and become gummy. Overcooking them will also make them gummy. When you see them stop puffing, gently take them out and let them rest on a plate. They will shrink a bit.

Pour the milk in which you poached the meringues through a sieve to catch any cooked bits of meringue. Weigh the milk and add as much additional milk as you need to get 1 liter again (200-300 ml). Put it back in the pan and bring to a boil with scraped vanilla seeds from the vanilla pod and the pod. Meanwhile, mix the egg yolks with sugar. Temper the yolk mixture-when the milk comes to a boil, slowly pour it into the egg yolk mixture while mixing constantly. Pour everything back to the pan and cook the creme anglaise on a medium-low heat for a few minutes stirring and scraping the bottom and the sides constantly so the eggs don't cook. Cook until the custard reaches 85°C or until the custard is thick enough to coat the spatula, don't boil! Strain the creme anglaise through a sieve into a bowl to remove any cooked bits and take out the vanilla pod. Cover with a cling film, so that it touches the surface of the sauce. Let it cool to room temperature.

When the creme anglaise is at room temp begin to assemble. Crush the biscuits to fine crumbs and distribute them to the serving bowl and press them down. Now slowly and carefully pour the creme anglaise on the biscuits, so they don't float on top of the sauce. Add the poached meringues and refrigerate for as long as you can wait (the longer the better, so the biscuits can soak up the moisture of the sauce and the sauce can chill).

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