diff --git a/Cargo.lock b/Cargo.lock
index 206bdcb00e..eee1147c84 100644
--- a/Cargo.lock
+++ b/Cargo.lock
@@ -457,6 +457,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "eth2_ssz",
  "eth2_ssz_derive",
  "eth2_ssz_types",
+ "execution_layer",
  "exit-future",
  "fork_choice",
  "futures",
@@ -2076,10 +2077,10 @@ dependencies = [
  "serde",
  "serde_json",
  "slog",
+ "task_executor",
  "tokio",
  "types",
  "warp",
- "warp_utils",
 ]
 
 [[package]]
diff --git a/beacon_node/beacon_chain/Cargo.toml b/beacon_node/beacon_chain/Cargo.toml
index cc66408ac4..7d2f6ac98b 100644
--- a/beacon_node/beacon_chain/Cargo.toml
+++ b/beacon_node/beacon_chain/Cargo.toml
@@ -63,3 +63,4 @@ exit-future = "0.2.0"
 slasher = { path = "../../slasher" }
 eth2 = { path = "../../common/eth2" }
 strum = { version = "0.21.0", features = ["derive"] }
+execution_layer = { path = "../execution_layer" }
diff --git a/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/beacon_chain.rs b/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/beacon_chain.rs
index b2a041f934..25755c90c2 100644
--- a/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/beacon_chain.rs
+++ b/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/beacon_chain.rs
@@ -46,6 +46,7 @@ use crate::BeaconForkChoiceStore;
 use crate::BeaconSnapshot;
 use crate::{metrics, BeaconChainError};
 use eth2::types::{EventKind, SseBlock, SseChainReorg, SseFinalizedCheckpoint, SseHead, SyncDuty};
+use execution_layer::ExecutionLayer;
 use fork_choice::ForkChoice;
 use futures::channel::mpsc::Sender;
 use itertools::process_results;
@@ -272,6 +273,8 @@ pub struct BeaconChain<T: BeaconChainTypes> {
         Mutex<ObservedOperations<AttesterSlashing<T::EthSpec>, T::EthSpec>>,
     /// Provides information from the Ethereum 1 (PoW) chain.
     pub eth1_chain: Option<Eth1Chain<T::Eth1Chain, T::EthSpec>>,
+    /// Interfaces with the execution client.
+    pub execution_layer: Option<ExecutionLayer>,
     /// Stores a "snapshot" of the chain at the time the head-of-the-chain block was received.
     pub(crate) canonical_head: TimeoutRwLock<BeaconSnapshot<T::EthSpec>>,
     /// The root of the genesis block.
diff --git a/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/builder.rs b/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/builder.rs
index 6d4b9225d7..8b48ea6e42 100644
--- a/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/builder.rs
+++ b/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/builder.rs
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ use crate::{
     Eth1ChainBackend, ServerSentEventHandler,
 };
 use eth1::Config as Eth1Config;
+use execution_layer::ExecutionLayer;
 use fork_choice::ForkChoice;
 use futures::channel::mpsc::Sender;
 use operation_pool::{OperationPool, PersistedOperationPool};
@@ -75,6 +76,7 @@ pub struct BeaconChainBuilder<T: BeaconChainTypes> {
     >,
     op_pool: Option<OperationPool<T::EthSpec>>,
     eth1_chain: Option<Eth1Chain<T::Eth1Chain, T::EthSpec>>,
+    execution_layer: Option<ExecutionLayer>,
     event_handler: Option<ServerSentEventHandler<T::EthSpec>>,
     slot_clock: Option<T::SlotClock>,
     shutdown_sender: Option<Sender<ShutdownReason>>,
@@ -112,6 +114,7 @@ where
             fork_choice: None,
             op_pool: None,
             eth1_chain: None,
+            execution_layer: None,
             event_handler: None,
             slot_clock: None,
             shutdown_sender: None,
@@ -470,6 +473,12 @@ where
         self
     }
 
+    /// Sets the `BeaconChain` execution layer.
+    pub fn execution_layer(mut self, execution_layer: Option<ExecutionLayer>) -> Self {
+        self.execution_layer = execution_layer;
+        self
+    }
+
     /// Sets the `BeaconChain` event handler backend.
     ///
     /// For example, provide `ServerSentEventHandler` as a `handler`.
@@ -711,6 +720,7 @@ where
             observed_proposer_slashings: <_>::default(),
             observed_attester_slashings: <_>::default(),
             eth1_chain: self.eth1_chain,
+            execution_layer: self.execution_layer,
             genesis_validators_root: canonical_head.beacon_state.genesis_validators_root(),
             canonical_head: TimeoutRwLock::new(canonical_head.clone()),
             genesis_block_root,
diff --git a/beacon_node/execution_layer/Cargo.toml b/beacon_node/execution_layer/Cargo.toml
index 7680c9e831..9e80a553ed 100644
--- a/beacon_node/execution_layer/Cargo.toml
+++ b/beacon_node/execution_layer/Cargo.toml
@@ -18,6 +18,6 @@ serde_json = "1.0.58"
 serde = { version = "1.0.116", features = ["derive"] }
 eth1 = { path = "../eth1" }
 warp = { git = "https://github.com/paulhauner/warp ", branch = "cors-wildcard" }
-warp_utils = { path = "../../common/warp_utils" }
 environment = { path = "../../lighthouse/environment" }
 bytes = "1.1.0"
+task_executor = { path = "../../common/task_executor" }
diff --git a/beacon_node/execution_layer/src/lib.rs b/beacon_node/execution_layer/src/lib.rs
index 465d994866..4c5fe547a8 100644
--- a/beacon_node/execution_layer/src/lib.rs
+++ b/beacon_node/execution_layer/src/lib.rs
@@ -1,7 +1,10 @@
-use engine_api::{http::HttpJsonRpc, Error as ApiError, *};
+use engine_api::{Error as ApiError, *};
 use engines::{Engine, EngineError, Engines};
 use sensitive_url::SensitiveUrl;
 use slog::Logger;
+use task_executor::TaskExecutor;
+
+pub use engine_api::http::HttpJsonRpc;
 
 mod engine_api;
 mod engines;
@@ -19,12 +22,18 @@ impl From<ApiError> for Error {
     }
 }
 
-pub struct ExecutionLayer<T> {
-    engines: Engines<T>,
+pub struct ExecutionLayer {
+    engines: Engines<HttpJsonRpc>,
+    /// Allows callers to execute async tasks in a non-async environment, if they desire.
+    pub executor: TaskExecutor,
 }
 
-impl ExecutionLayer<HttpJsonRpc> {
-    pub fn from_urls(urls: Vec<SensitiveUrl>, log: Logger) -> Result<Self, Error> {
+impl ExecutionLayer {
+    pub fn from_urls(
+        urls: Vec<SensitiveUrl>,
+        executor: TaskExecutor,
+        log: Logger,
+    ) -> Result<Self, Error> {
         let engines = urls
             .into_iter()
             .map(|url| {
@@ -36,11 +45,12 @@ impl ExecutionLayer<HttpJsonRpc> {
 
         Ok(Self {
             engines: Engines { engines, log },
+            executor,
         })
     }
 }
 
-impl<T: EngineApi> ExecutionLayer<T> {
+impl ExecutionLayer {
     pub async fn prepare_payload(
         &self,
         parent_hash: Hash256,
diff --git a/beacon_node/execution_layer/src/test_utils/mod.rs b/beacon_node/execution_layer/src/test_utils/mod.rs
index 1b28d1199a..95dbb4cbb2 100644
--- a/beacon_node/execution_layer/src/test_utils/mod.rs
+++ b/beacon_node/execution_layer/src/test_utils/mod.rs
@@ -95,7 +95,6 @@ pub struct Context<T> {
 pub struct Config {
     pub listen_addr: Ipv4Addr,
     pub listen_port: u16,
-    pub allow_origin: Option<String>,
 }
 
 impl Default for Config {
@@ -103,7 +102,6 @@ impl Default for Config {
         Self {
             listen_addr: Ipv4Addr::new(127, 0, 0, 1),
             listen_port: 0,
-            allow_origin: None,
         }
     }
 }
@@ -130,19 +128,6 @@ pub fn serve<T: EthSpec>(
     let config = &ctx.config;
     let log = ctx.log.clone();
 
-    // Configure CORS.
-    let cors_builder = {
-        let builder = warp::cors()
-            .allow_method("GET")
-            .allow_headers(vec!["Content-Type"]);
-
-        warp_utils::cors::set_builder_origins(
-            builder,
-            config.allow_origin.as_deref(),
-            (config.listen_addr, config.listen_port),
-        )?
-    };
-
     let inner_ctx = ctx.clone();
     let routes = warp::post()
         .and(warp::path("echo"))
@@ -155,8 +140,7 @@ pub fn serve<T: EthSpec>(
             )
         })
         // Add a `Server` header.
-        .map(|reply| warp::reply::with_header(reply, "Server", "lighthouse-mock-execution-client"))
-        .with(cors_builder.build());
+        .map(|reply| warp::reply::with_header(reply, "Server", "lighthouse-mock-execution-client"));
 
     let (listening_socket, server) = warp::serve(routes).try_bind_with_graceful_shutdown(
         SocketAddrV4::new(config.listen_addr, config.listen_port),