I got the assignment to make the cake for Easter dinner last week, after mulling around I came across this which looked relatively simple and looked great.

https://www.marthastewart.com/1538122/honeycomb-cake-easy-decorating-technique

I thought I did a good job, it looked great, everyone was impressed.

It tasted very good, but the cake was as dense as a brick. It was fully cooked, just incredibly dense. My sister, a much better baker than I, asked what the leavening agent was. There was none called for in the recipe. I have heard it's possible to bake a pound cake style without leavening if you are careful how you combine and beat the batter, I was.

In the end I am wondering if the baking powder was omitted from the recipe (it will be the first time I've ever had one of Martha's recipes fail me) or if I wasn't up to the technique.

thanks,

 Rob

The only thing I can say is that many of Martha Stewart’s recipes are not exact   Maybe someone else is more fimilar w/that exact recipe & can help in a better way 

I don't know

but if you want a killer pound cake recipe -- although trisha printed this in her book -- it's an old recipe from way back --

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/trisha-yearwood/cold-oven-poundcake-recipe-2065356

don't substitute anything  and don't pre-heat the oven -- but don't be bashful about making a good smooth emulsion with the butter* & sugar and then the eggs added one at a time -- she wants you to be careful about mixing and I want you to be bold and mix well -- after all the flour goes in -- mix for two mins -- no worries

* use pretty firm butter not soft

and I probably use two tablespoons of vanilla -- one of my mottos, "if a little is good a lot is better" 

I could eat this batter with a spoon out of a dessert dish 

and all it needs after that is a glaze -- powdered sugar, lemon juice and milk -- more lemon than milk -- mmmmm -- use a nice bundt pan -- watch the bake at the end -- it needs to crack on top and bake off that last little bit -- I start the oven cold then 350 then at the end where it's almost done -- I back off the temp to stop the browning but still the rest of the batter will set up because the internal temp is right in about 90% of the cake -- and I put a foil tent over the cake when I start to reduce the temp --

Yes Kakeladi,   I've found that LOTS and LOTS of recipes online and in cookbooks have errors, missing or wrong ingredients, or wrong amounts.  It doesn't have to be a big mistake, just a tiny error can really mess up a recipe.   Practice and experience will help a baker spot these inconsistencies before you start the batter.