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Christmas offers a tempting abundance of sugary, fatty and salty foods, but eating these often creates a feeling of tiredness and bloating and could add unwanted kilos to the waistline.

Adding fruit and veg to the festive menu is a great way to counteract these ill-effects and get a welcome energy boost.

There are some fantastic recipes available for beautiful festive creations that will tantalise the taste buds.

Cancer Council NSW nutrition program Eat It To Beat It works with parents year-round to help families add more fruit and vegetables to the household diet for better health and cancer prevention.

Eat It To Beat It’s tips for adding fruit and veg to the Christmas table include:

Nibbles: create a vegetable Christmas tree, layering green produce on a platter in the shape of a tree (celery, capsicum, cucumber, snow peas or broccoli) and adding pieces of red (capsicum, cherry tomatoes), yellow (capsicum) and orange (carrot) for decorations.

Mains: salads are ideal for Australian summer lunches and dinners; vegetables are great with traditional roasts; or use a vegetable stuffing for meats, such as combined spinach, cottage cheese, sun-dried tomato, basil, mushroom, capsicum, onion and garlic inside rolled chicken breast.

Dessert: serve fruit-filled desserts such as a colourful platter, poached stone fruit, baked apples, or cute creations including strawberry santas, watermelon trees, or fruit kebabs or cones.