pound cake

I made a pound cake last night from On Cooking by Sarah Labensky. Didn't turn out like I thought it would. Think the boo-boo I made was in creaming the butter and sugar. Butter was probably too cold and the batter came out still a little lumpy with butter. The texture was pretty open and grainy and the loaf split on top. Any thoughts or suggestions?

[momoreg]

Definitely, if you saw lumps of butter, you'll need to cream it more next time. Also, your butter does not have to be ice cold. If it's closer to room temp, you run less risk of lumps.

It's okay if the loaf split on top, but if you want it more compact, try reducing the baking powder a little.

Thanks, Momoreg. I promise to do better next time. Really, I shoulda known better.